Battle Scars
by Caribbean1989
Summary: In the middle of the night the Company is attacked by Orcs and Fili, Kili and Bilbo are captured. It is up to Thorin and the rest of the Company to save them before it is too late... OC in later chapters. Repost. Please R and R.
1. Chapter 1

"We will camp here for the night" Thorin said in a loud voice so the entire Company could hear him. He motioned toward a clearing in the forest, protected partially by an overhanging rock.  
"Fili, Kili, you two look after the ponies. You can tie them up at that row of trees over there. Bofur, you are in charge of supper. The rest of you, please find some wood for the fire" Thorin handed out the tasks.

Soon the entire Company was busy and Thorin was left alone with Gandalf and Bilbo. The wizard sat down on a rock smoking his pipe, while the Hobbit went to help Bofur with the food.  
Thorin looked over at his nephews, who were taking care of the ponies. For once the two brothers worked in silence, instead of their usual chatter and fun-making. They looked tired from the day's journey. He smiled silently to himself. For years he had desperately sought for ways to shut his nephews up, but had never been able to find any. Clearly, a quest like this did the trick.

One by one the members of the Company returned from their respective tasks. They got a fire going and Bofur started his cooking. Fili and Kili were the last ones to return, sitting down on either side of Thorin.

It wasn't long before everyone had eaten and was preparing for the night.  
Both Fili and Kili were already deep asleep, curled up in their cloaks, snoring softly. Gandalf offered to take the first watch, to which no one protested. They were all very tired and fell asleep in no time.

While everyone was sleeping soundly, Thorin lay awake for a long time, listening to his comrades snore. He looked at Kili's peaceful form, who slept a few feet away from him. He had curled into himself like a little child and was sleeping deeply, breathing slow. On his other side, he could hear Fili roll over in his sleep.  
Even though the peaceful sight and sounds of all his sleeping comrades, an undefined fear crept up on Thorin. He did not know why or what it was, but it was definitely there. He looked around in the darkness and listened intently to the sounds of the forest, but could not discover anything that would cause his unease. Thorin sighed deeply and rolled onto his other side, now staring at Fili's back. He closed his eyes and after a while his exhaustion got the better of him. He fell asleep like the rest of the Company. 

* * *

It was a few hours after his watch had begun, that Gandalf first heard the sounds. Twigs snapping, the rustle of leaves even when there was no wind. He peered into the darkness, but could not see a thing. Maybe he was overreacting and was it just a deer or rabbit wandering through the forest.  
No matter what he told himself, he could not shake the anxious feeling. He found himself constantly looking to the dark trees, scanning the darkness for anything unusual. His ears pricked for any disturbing sounds.  
A cloud shifted away from the moon, allowing more light to shine through. It was then that he saw the moonlight reflected in dozens of shining eyes…

Suddenly it was as if the whole world exploded. Ten Wargs, with Orcs on their backs, jumped out from the cover of the trees. About thirty more Orcs on foot followed them closely.  
"Attack! We are under attack!" Gandalf yelled, waking up all the Dwarves and Bilbo. Everyone scrambled to their feet, picking up their weapons. Thorin and Fili were the first ones to be armed, for they always slept with their weapons in their hands.

Soon a war was waging on that small piece of the forest. Everyone was fighting for their lives and the lives of the others.  
Together, Dwalin and Thorin had taken down a Warg. Bofur had landed his mattock on the head of one of the other Wargs, smashing its skull. Fili and Kili stood back to back and had already killed a couple of Orcs. Even Bilbo had managed to kill one of the smaller Orcs with his 'letter opener'.

The Company kept slaying Wargs and Orcs at high speed, it looked like they were winning the battle. It was at this moment that a terrible scream of pain reverberated through the forest.  
Thorin spun round, for a moment not paying attention to the battle they were fighting. He looked in the direction of the scream and felt terror creep up on him. Kili was on his knees, clutching his side. His hands were stained with blood, face screwed up in pain. The blood was his own, Thorin realized with a shock. Fili lay on the ground beside his brother, unmoving. Several Orcs surrounded the two brothers, ready to kill them.

Thorin let out an enraged scream. "Stay away from my kin!" he yelled at the Orcs standing close to Fili and Kili. He wanted to go to his nephews as soon as possible, he needed to be with them right now. But he also needed to fight, make sure this battle was won. He hesitated for a moment too long, had his attention on his nephews for a second too long. He had not seen the Orc coming. Something hard struck him in the side of the head. He swayed on his feet, trying desperately to cling to consciousness. As the world gradually went black, he knew his attempt was failing… 

* * *

Bilbo had been close to Kili when the Orc-blade struck him. He had heard the young Dwarf's cries loudest of all. Dropping his sword, he ran over to Kili's side.  
"Let me have a look at it" Bilbo told Kili anxiously, who kept pushing Bilbo's hands away from his wound. "No, Fili… check on Fili" he breathed out.  
Bilbo agreed reluctantly and moved over to Fili. The blonde Dwarf lay on his back on the forest floor, head fallen to the side, eyes closed. He was not moving, but clearly still breathing. Bilbo could see his chest rising and falling. He quickly checked him for wounds, but couldn't find any, except for a still darkening bruise on the back of his neck.  
"He's just knocked out" Bilbo said, moving back over to Kili, "he will be fine. Now let me look at your wound". Kili raised his eyes to Bilbo, giving him a look which spoke of agonizing pain. Bilbo stared back, lost for words. What did you say to a wounded person?  
"You're going to be fine too" he told Kili after a moment of silence. The young Dwarf closed his eyes and Bilbo could see one single tear rolling down his cheek.

Suddenly Bilbo was roughly pulled away from Kili.  
"Take those two" an Orc close to Bilbo's ear rasped to his comrades, pointing toward Fili and Kili. Several more Orcs appeared into view and threw Kili and Fili over their shoulders and started carrying them away. Kili let out several screams in pain as his wound was angered more with every movement.  
"What do we do about him?" the Orc holding Bilbo said, pulling him to his feet. "Take him as well" the Orc, who clearly was the leader of the pack, said after staring at Bilbo intently, "he could be of use too".

Bilbo was also thrown over the shoulder of an Orc and carried away through the forest to he did not know where. Never in his life had he been as afraid as he was now. What was going to happen to them? Where were the Orcs going to take them?

The last thing Bilbo saw of the Company, was their horrified faces as they tried to fight off the remaining Orcs to try and stop them from taking Fili, Kili and himself.  
But it was hopeless. There was nothing they could do. The Orcs and Wargs had formed a barrier which could not easily be breached. The Company could only watch powerlessly as the Orcs ran away with their friends… 

* * *

****

Thanks all for reading!  
Please let me know what you think. Update will follow soon! :-)


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I just want to apologize in advance that this chapter is a little shorter than usual. I promise the rest will be "normal" length again.  
Also forgive me the Lord of the Rings reference at the end of the chapter, I just couldn't help myself :-)  
All reviews are appreciated and I will update with chapter 3 soon.**

Thanks for reading and have fun with chapter 2 for now!  


* * *

"Thorin? Thorin, please wake up".  
Very slowly Thorin returned to consciousness. He felt someone shake him and carefully opened his eyes. He was lying on his back, looking up at a dark, star-strewn sky and some treetops. He felt as though he had been hit by a stone giant and then run over by Gandalf's horse.  
Thorin let out a groan and rolled himself onto his side. He was still too dazed to get upright. There was a hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright, laddie?" Balin spoke softly. The old Dwarf was kneeling beside him. "Give me a moment, then I will be" Thorin answered with another grunt of pain. His head hurt like hell.

"Is everyone else okay?" Thorin asked Balin, closing his eyes against the bright firelight he was now facing and trying to arrange his thoughts.  
"Well…". Balin's hesitation was enough for Thorin to snap his eyes open again and sit bolt upright.  
"Who is it?" Thorin demanded. "How are Fili or Kili?" he asked, giving Balin no opportunity to answer his first question. He had suddenly remembered Kili's scream of pain and Fili lying on the ground.

"Well" Balin began again, "Fili, Kili and Bilbo have been taken captive by the Orcs. We do not know what condition they are in, but Kili definitely was injured before they were dragged off. We do not know how bad his injuries are".  
Thorin's face turned ghostly pale. "The Orcs… took them?" he muttered out in complete shock. He knew that if they were captured by Orcs they would undoubtedly get hurt, if they were not already. This situation was grave, extremely grave…

Thorin buried his face in his hands. "How long was I out?" came his muffled voice.  
"For over an hour" Balin answered. Thorin sighed miserably, "so the Orcs have got a good head start and we don't know where they have gone. Great…"  
Balin looked at his leader sadly. It was nothing like him to behave so defeated.  
"We know their general direction" Balin said, "plus Gandalf has a hunch to where their lair might be, he says he probably knows the place".  
Thorin looked up at Balin. "Ready the ponies" he said without a moment of thought, decision made immediately, "we are going after them. Now". Balin gave Thorin one last look. This was more like the leader he know. He then stood up to give orders to the others.  
The Company scattered and hurried to pack up their stuff and ready themselves for departure.

Dwalin walked over to Thorin once Balin had left him alone. "You certain about this?" he asked, "with all due respect, but you cannot even stand up yet".  
"Yes, I am very certain" Thorin answered, looking crossly at Dwalin, "I will not leave Fili and Kili, or our burglar for that matter, to die with those monsters. I will save them, even if it is the last thing I will ever do". Dwalin thought Thorin's words over and looked into his glaring eyes. "Then we are with you" he said, placing a hand on Thorin's shoulder. He too walked away to ready himself and his pony. 

* * *

"Halt! We will rest here shortly!" the Orc-leader shouted to the others. They had run for over two hours straight since they had left the Dwarves on that small clearing in the forest.  
Bilbo was thrown hard on the ground, both Fili and Kili were thrown down a little away from him. Bilbo dragged himself over to the young dwarves, worried about the fact that neither of them was moving.

Quickly Bilbo checked up on their wounds. Somewhere along the journey over the Orc's shoulder, Kili too had passed out, probably from pain. Bilbo could see his wound was deep and had to be very painful. It had bled quite a lot. The side of Kili's tunic was soaked with his own blood. To his relief, Bilbo saw the wound had now nearly stopped bleeding. His main concern at this point was infection. He had no possibility to clean the wound and Orc blades weren't exactly clean objects and often poisonous. He sighed miserably, knowing there was nothing more he could do for Kili now.

Fili had not regained consciousness yet. The bruise on the back of his neck had turned an ugly shade of purple, but Bilbo could still not find any other injuries on him. He shook Fili's shoulder slightly, trying to wake the young Dwarf up.  
"Fili? Can you hear me?" He said softly to him, so the Orcs would not overhear. Nothing happened. There was not even the slightest sign that Fili had noticed anything. Bilbo sat back, looking down on the two brothers. It looked like he was on his own for now… 

* * *

The Company had readied their ponies in record-time. Thorin still sat where he had fallen, lost in thought. Balin walked up to him. "We are ready to go" he said carefully. Thorin looked up at him, a very sad look in his eyes. Balin had never seen Thorin look like this and he was a little unnerved by it.  
"We will find them" the old Dwarf said reassuringly, although he was not sure he believed his own words.  
"What if we don't?" Thorin said, "they will die a terrible death at the hand of some nasty, stinking Orc". "But we _will_ find them" Balin said sternly, "and we _will_ save them from those Orcs, protect them and take them home. Now come along".

Thorin looked at Balin in surprise. He had known the old Dwarf all his life, but never before had he spoken to his prince like this. Balin stared back at Thorin a little anxiously. Had he gone too far?  
Thorin stood up with a grunt. "You're right" he said, "I am being stupid. Let's go, no time to lose". Thorin gave Balin a thankful smile before he walked away.

The entire Company watched as Thorin climbed onto his pony.  
Once he was in the saddle he looked around at everyone with a determined look on his face. "Let's hunt some Orc!" 


	3. Chapter 3

To Bilbo it felt like he had been lying on the ground for mere seconds, before an Orc picked him up and threw him over a shoulder again. He could see the same happening to Fili and Kili, who still had not regained consciousness.  
"Come on! Hurry up!" the Orc-leader yelled and at this they set off running again.

The Orcs ran for a very long time. Bilbo felt sore from being bumped around. The shoulder of an Orc was absolutely not a comfortable way of travelling. His mind raced over possible places the Orcs could be taking them and what they would do to them once they had reached their destination. None of them were happy thoughts.

When the Orcs finally slowed down a little, they had reached the foot of some sort of rocky hill with jagged edges around the top. Without even stopping they went up the winding path to the top.  
On every side of the path Bilbo could see ever more Orcs. Just under the top of the hill was a large enclosure where a dozen of Wargs were held. Seeing the numerous Orcs and Wargs, even more worry washed over Bilbo.  
The Orcs finally stopped running at the top of the hill. They came to a stand-still near a large Orc who had his back turned to them, looking into the darkness that covered the nature all around.

"Master, we have brought three of the Dwarf-filth back" one of the Orcs said to the large Orc, who apparently was their leader. Bilbo, Kili and Fili were roughly thrown to the ground at their feet. Bilbo quickly looked around for possible ways of escape. However, he could see it was hopeless. They were surrounded by dozens of Orcs.  
The leader to which the Orcs had spoken slowly turned around. It was the ugliest Orc Bilbo had seen so far: his skin was very pale, nearly albino-like, he was heavily scarred and where his left forearm should have been a large claw-like weapon was instead.

"Neither one of them is the one I asked you to bring back and the third one is not even a Dwarf" the pale Orc said in a cold voice. Several of the Orcs closed in at Bilbo to have a better look at him, trying to confirm that he indeed was no Dwarf.  
"No, noble Azog" one of the Orcs replied, "but we have reason to believe that these two Dwarves are related to Thorin Oakenshield".  
"Are they really?" Azog said, looking down on the unconscious figures of Fili and Kili, "and how do you know this so certain?"  
"We heard him refer to these two as being his kin" one of the Orcs replied, not meeting his leader's eyes. Azog nodded slowly at this, apparently deciding something. "Throw them into the cell, I will see to them later" he said, a malignant look in his eyes as he turned his back to the rest of the Orcs again. 

* * *

Thorin winced with every step his pony took. His entire body was sore from the fight. There was dried blood on the side of his face and in his hair where the Orc-weapon had hit him. Carefully he let his fingers trace the wound on the side of his head. It was not bad, the blunt weapon had only broken his skin and left some bruises. His head still hurt a lot, but he was not going to let it stop him.  
His thoughts were on Fili and Kili. Where would they be now? What state would they be in? What would the Orcs do to them? And Bilbo, what would happen to the Hobbit? Thorin pushed the thoughts away. He would make sure they were going to be alright. All of them. He would not let them get harmed any more.

The Company had no trouble in tracking down the route the Orcs had taken. It appeared they had made no attempt to hide their tracks. Even an inexperienced tracker would have been able to pick up the trail.  
Dwalin was riding at the head of the group, guiding them in the right direction. His keen eyes endlessly scanning the ground for the next track.

It was Gandalf who first spoke after a while, since they rode mostly in silence.  
"My hunch is being confirmed so far" Gandalf said, "I know where the lair of these Orcs might be. Even so, that is not good. It means they are on a hill and they will be able to spot us from some distance. We will have to think about our approach carefully".  
Thorin looked at the old wizard, a very angry expression on his face. "They are not being careful with Fili and Kili, so I will not be careful with them" he growled to the wizard in a menacing tone. Thorin kicked his pony in the sides to go ride at the head of the Company next to Dwalin. "Yes, that is what I feared" Gandalf whispered to himself, looking at Thorin's back.

Finally they were nearing the edge of the dense forest they had been riding through.  
"Wait!" Gandalf said urgently. Everyone reined in their ponies to look at the wizard. "What is it?" Thorin asked him. "Once we go out of the forest the Orcs will immediately be able to see us. Their lair is close. We can best approach them when it is dark" Gandalf said. Thorin looked up at the sky. The sun had only just come up, which meant they would have to wait all day.  
He sighed, he didn't know for sure what was the best thing to do. Some part of him wanted to ride out immediately and save his nephews and the Hobbit. But on the other hand he knew that riding out now would be equal to suicide.  
Gandalf noticed Thorin's doubts. "If you want to give this rescue a chance, you will have to wait until dark" the old wizard spoke. Thorin knew Gandalf was right, but he didn't like the idea of his nephews being in the hands of the Orcs for half a day longer.  
"Alright" he finally said, "we will wait here until dark, then we will attack". Gandalf nodded his approval, while the rest of the Company started to get off their ponies. They would have a long day of waiting ahead of them. 

* * *

Bilbo was roughly shoved into a cell. It was in a small sort of cave. The entrance was blocked by thick, wooden bars of which some could be removed to form a way through. Fili and Kili were thrown in after him. The Orcs put the wooden bars in place again and two of them took guard just outside.

When Fili hit the ground he let out a grunt. Bilbo immediately crawled over to his side, realizing the young Dwarf must be waking up.  
"Fili?" he asked softly. Fili let out a groan in reply. He was lying on his front, eyes still closed.  
"Can your hear me, Fili?" Bilbo tried again, placing a hand on Fili's back. "Hmm… yes" Fili replied, wearily opening his eyes. Slowly he raised a hand to his bruised neck, rubbing it gently. He carefully sat up and let out another groan in pain, while massaging his neck.  
Bilbo looked at Fili concernedly. He half-expected him to lose consciousness again at any time, for he was extremely pale.

"Where are we?" the blonde Dwarf asked, still a little dazed. "The Orcs captured us" Bilbo answered quietly. Fili raised his blue eyes to Bilbo. "Kili?" he asked. A sad look appeared on Bilbo's face as he motioned toward where Kili had been dumped on the ground. Fili turned his head to where Bilbo had pointed and went even paler.  
"Oh no, Kili!" Fili exclaimed, jumping up and hurrying over to his brother. Kili lay on his side on the ground a few feet away from them.  
"Kili? Kili? Come on little brother, wake up. Please, don't do this to me now". But Kili did not move. The only movement that could be seen on him were his pained, shallow breaths. Occasionally a shudder rocked his body.  
"He has lost a lot of blood" Bilbo said, who had moved over to sit next to Fili, both of them looking down on Kili.

Fili took a better look at Kili's injuries. He knew immediately that they needed to take care of the wound to prevent it from getting infected.  
For a moment Fili just sat motionlessly next to his brother, then he started to shake all over when he realized that there was no way they could tend to his brother's wounds here. They did not even have water in their cell.  
Bilbo placed a hand on Fili's back, seeing him struggle with the situation.  
"I am sure the others will try to rescue us" he said softly to him. Fili nodded slightly in return. Bilbo was right. Thorin would at least try to rescue them. He just hoped they would be in time to save his little brother… 

* * *

**Thanks again for reading.  
Please R + R :-)**


	4. Chapter 4

Fili and Bilbo sat next to Kili all day long. Just watching over him in case anything would change in his condition. They barely spoke. Fili had taken off his cloak and draped it over his brother, trying to keep him warm.  
Bilbo noticed the light in their cell changing, evening had started to set in.

Suddenly they were interrupted by the two Orcs standing guard in front of their cell.  
"One of the Dwarf-filth is awake" one of the Orcs yelled. "Good, bring him here" another Orc, out of Bilbo and Fili's view, answered. Bilbo could feel Fili stiffen with fear next to him. They both knew this meant no good.

The two Orcs burst into the cell and each grabbed one of Fili's arms, pulling him to his feet. Fili struggled with all his might against the Orcs pulling him away. "No! Let go of me!" He yelled at the foul-smelling creatures.  
Unfortunately it was to no avail. The Orcs pulled him out of the cell with apparent ease, holding iron grips of Fili's arms.  
Bilbo was left behind, terrified. What would happen to Fili now? He knew there was nothing he could do. He just had to sit and wait. 

* * *

Fili was dragged forward towards the pale Orc named Azog and thrown down at his feet.  
Azog looked down menacingly at Fili. "Are you currently travelling with Thorin Oakenshield?" he asked him, not wasting any time. Fili just glared up at the pale Orc and was absolutely not planning on answering any of his questions.  
"Very well" Azog said after a while when he realized Fili was not going to answer, "let us try that again. Are you currently travelling with Thorin Oakenshield?"  
Fili kept glaring up at him, still not saying a word. Suddenly he spat on the ground near the pale Orc's feet. "I will never answer your questions and you will not hear another word from me" he growled at Azog.

Azog didn't take his eyes off Fili, the menacing look hardening on his face. Fili knew what would be coming even before Azog spoke the words.  
"We will see about that" Azog said, "let us see how long you are willing to stay loyal, master Dwarf".  
Fili just sat on his knees, shifting his gaze to the ground. He heard Azog walking away and picking something up on the other side of the narrow hilltop.

Fili raised his head again when a shadow told him Azog had returned to him. He felt fear rise in his chest when he saw Azog was carrying a large and heavy wooden log.  
"Still not talking?" Azog said with a cold chuckle. It looked like he was actually looking forward to using that log.  
Fili stayed silent and bowed his head again, preparing himself for the pain he knew was inevitable.

"As you wish" Azog said. A cruel laugh escaped him.  
Without any warning he gave the log a giant swing and landed it with a loud thud onto Fili's shoulder. Fili let out a horrible scream in pain and doubled over, gasping for air. Azog could not care less and brought the branch down on Fili again, this time hitting him in the back. Fili's scream was even worse than the first one. This was the most intense pain he had ever felt in his entire life.

In the cell Bilbo heard the terrible screams. He started to shake, knowing what was going on without being able to see it. In some way of support he curled his hands into the cloak that still covered the unconscious Kili. He stared into nothingness, trying to block out the continued screaming. Trying not to think about what Fili felt at this moment.  
To his horror, Bilbo suddenly felt Kili stir under the cloak. "...Fili" he breathed out very softly.  
"No, no, no, no" Bilbo panicked, "go back to sleep, Kili. Please, this is not the time, you do not need to hear this".  
Another terrible scream echoed off the rocks. Kili's eyes snapped open, his breathing becoming fast at once. "Fili" he said louder, "Fili… where are you?" Kili's eyes found Bilbo's. From the look the Hobbit gave him, he nearly immediately understood the whole thing, tears welling up in his eyes. He repeatedly shook his head, not wanting to believe it. This could not be happening.  
Slowly Kili pulled the cloak that was covering him up to over his head, trying to block out his brother's screams. All Bilbo could think of doing was place a soothing hand on Kili's shoulder and try to block out the sounds himself. 

* * *

It was like Azog had been unleashed. He kept bringing down the log on Fili's body: on his back, ribs, chest, stomach, arms and legs. There was not a part of him left untouched by it. Every time the log hit him, Fili let out a terrible scream in pain. Each one more heartbreaking and agonizing than the previous.

"You still not going to talk to me?" Azog yelled, ceasing the beating for a moment.  
Fili lay curled up on the ground, breathing heavily. Every inch of his body hurt. He could feel bloodstains forming on his clothes on several points.  
He heard Azog was saying something, but his mind did not register what it was. It was just noise to him. His only thoughts were on that he needed to get up, he needed to get out of this place, escape this horrible pain. Slowly he moved his arm in order to push himself up, but he never got that far.  
As soon as Fili moved, Azog resumed his beating. Same as before, Fili let out the most horrible scream every time the log made contact with his body. Still he would not say anything to Azog about Thorin or their quest. He would never betray his uncle's trust in him. Thorin had never done anything to him to deserve that.

It was only after the sixteenth blow that Fili made no more sound and moved no more. His warrior-body had finally given out on him.  
Azog stopped and looked down on the young Dwarf once again. He hooked his claw-hand under Fili's upper arm and gave it a tug. When Fili did not give any sign of life, Azog motioned toward some of the Orcs. "Take this piece of filth back to the cell. He can die there" he ordered.

Two Orcs half-carried, half-dragged Fili back to the cell. When Bilbo saw them approaching and saw the beaten-up Fili, he knew his worst imaginations were in fact real.  
Fili was thrown unceremoniously into the cell. Bilbo immediately hurried to his side. "Fili? Fili?" he asked panicked, but no reaction came. Bilbo did not dare to touch him. It looked like every inch of his body was covered in bruises and blood. His clothes were torn in some places, revealing bloody cuts on his arms and back and on his chest another large bloodstain was forming. His breathing was shallow and pained, but at least still there.

"Fili?" A very weak voice close to Bilbo suddenly said. Kili had mustered up all the strength left in him and dragged himself over to Fili's side. Carefully he took his brother's hand in his.  
Kili laid himself down on the ground next to his brother. He did not close his eyes, but kept them fixed on Fili, afraid his brother might leave him forever at any moment. "Hold on, big brother" Kili whispered very softly, "hold on".

Bilbo swallowed hard. He felt like breaking down and crying at this point. He was locked up in a cell, captured by Orcs, with two young Dwarfs who were both in desperate need of medical care and no way to provide them with any. Were they ever going to get out of this alive? 

* * *

Thorin was restless, continually pacing up and down between two trees.  
Daylight was fading, evening had started to set in. They would have to wait just a few hours longer before they could set their plan in motion.

During the day they had been able to confirm the Orcs were actually on the hill. They could see them from their hiding place. Thorin's keen eyes had spotted Orcs moving on the rocks all day long and it looked like the Company had not been noticed by them yet.

"Thorin, calm down" Balin suddenly spoke, an unusual harsh tone to the old Dwarf's voice.  
Surprised by this, Thorin stopped his pacing to look at Balin. Eventually he let out a sigh, understanding Balin's meaning and sat down next to him on the remains of a blown down tree.  
"This waiting is hard on all of us" Balin said, looking at Thorin's worried face.  
"I know" was all Thorin said. Now that he had stopped his pacing, he had started fidgeting with his hands and fingers in order to keep himself occupied. Balin eyed him a little irritably, but made no comment and let Thorin be. This was not the time to get into a fight with his prince.

The daylight was fading fast now. Thorin knew that the moment was getting closer.  
It was at this moment that the most terrible scream reached the Company's ears. Thorin jumped up like he had been burned. He recognized that voice anywhere. "Fili…" he breathed out, concern sounding through.  
Gandalf gave Thorin a worried look. "There is still too much daylight" the old wizard said warningly, "we will be seen". Thorin immediately turned on Gandalf. "Didn't you just hear that?" he said in a raised voice, "that was a scream of agony, they are probably torturing him! We have to get them out of there! I will not wait a second longer. We will attack them now!"  
The Company looked from Thorin to Gandalf, anticipation clear on all their faces.

"Okay" Gandalf finally said, "we will ride now". He knew it was useless to argue with Thorin in this state.  
"Get ready for battle!" Thorin immediately ordered the rest of the Company. Everyone scurried around, readying themselves and climbing onto their ponies again to get to the Orc hill as fast as possible.  
Thorin could hear several more screams from Fili, enraging him even more. He looked around at the others and knew they had heard it too.  
Seeing his comrades he suddenly felt very proud of them. He knew they would go into whatever battle he asked them to fight. He himself jumped onto his pony as well, adrenaline already pumping through his veins.

Thorin yelled some of his battlecries, answered by the other Dwarves. He kicked his pony in the sides and together the Company and Gandalf raced out from the cover of the trees, ready to slay every Orc that would come on their path… 

* * *

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Thanks again for reading! Still, all reviews are appreciated.


	5. Chapter 5

Bilbo sat on the ground unmoving, keeping his eyes on both the Dwarves lying in front of him.  
Kili's situation had gone from bad to worse. He had started shivering under the warmth of the cloak covering him, sweat standing out on his face. Bilbo easily recognized the signs of infection on him. Still, Kili kept his eyes on his brother and held his hand, not giving in to unconsciousness again.  
Fili's bruises kept darkening. Several bloodstains were growing larger on his clothes. His breathing was shallow, barely visible from a distance. He had been drained of all his energy and strength, there was nothing left to fight his injuries.  
Bilbo knew that they had to get out of their cell soon. Fili and Kili needed care, otherwise they would probably not survive another day.

Suddenly all the Orcs were hurrying, running around and yelling at each other. Bilbo jumped to his feet and ran to the bars, peering through them at what caused this sudden uproar. Behind him Kili raised his head a little to look at the origin of the noise too. He, however, was too weak to stand up, no matter how bad he wanted it. In the end, Kili just lowered his head again and kept lying beside his brother's still form. Waiting for what was to come.

"Azog! We are being attacked!" Bilbo heard one of the Orcs scream at their leader. His heart skipped a beat. The attack the Orcs meant could only be from Thorin's Company. They had come to their rescue, there was a spark of hope again.

Bilbo could no longer contain himself: he had to do something. He could not just sit there and wait to be rescued.  
He repeatedly threw his shoulder into the wooden bars with all his might. He could do so undisturbed, now that the two Orcs that had been guarding them had run off. With every thrust of Bilbo's shoulder one of the wooden bars began cracking more and more. It hurt his shoulder so bad, but he kept going. He needed to get out _now_.

With one last mighty blow, he was able to break and push out one of the wooden bars, leaving a gap just wide enough for him to fit through.  
Bilbo hesitated for a moment. Could he leave Fili and Kili? He looked back at the young Dwarves over his shoulder. He found Kili looking straight at him. "What are you waiting for? Go! We won't be going anywhere…" Kili said in a hoarse, powerless voice. Bilbo gave a small smile at Kili's joke and nodded slowly. Careful not to be seen by an Orc, he crept out of the cell. 

* * *

The entire Company urged their ponies to go as fast as they could. Thorin saw the Orc-infested hill come closer with every stride. He unsheathed his sword and behind him he heard the others raise their weapons as well. It felt unusual for him to attack from horseback, but he could not care less about that at this moment. They just needed to be there as fast as they could. It worried him sick that Fili's screams had stopped.

As soon as he reached the foot of the hill, Thorin slowed down his pony and jumped off it before it had come to a full stop. Some Orcs had descended from the top of the hill, meeting the Company at the bottom. Enraged, Thorin hacked them down with ease. He started running up the path to the top of the hill, followed closely by the rest of the Company and Gandalf.  
On their way up they encountered more Orcs, but had no trouble in killing those. The Company was working together like a well-oiled war-machine.  
Bifur and Bombur managed to kill the three Orcs that were fumbling with a fence, trying to release the Wargs. Luckily they managed to do so before the animals were released. All the beasts could do now was snap their teeth at the Dwarves from behind their fences, but were not able to harm anyone.

Running around the last corner of the winding path, Thorin suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, nearly causing the others to run into him. They all immediately saw why.  
At the end of the path an enormous white Warg was facing them, teeth bared. On his back the Warg carried the hideous pale Orc. "Azog?!" Thorin said incredulously, "that cannot be…".  
"Thorin Oakenshield" Azog replied, a murderous look on his face, "you should know it takes more than an arm to kill me".  
"Noted" Thorin growled, gripping his sword more firmly, readying himself for the attack he expected would soon come.  
And indeed. Azog kicked his Warg which sprang forward, snapping his fangs at the Dwarf.  
Thorin swung his sword at the animal once it was within range, giving is a deep cut across its head. This was directly followed by something heavy flying past Thorin and landing on the white Warg's head. With a loud, ominous crack the animal sank to the ground, throwing Azog from its back and moving no more.  
Thorin cast one quick glance over his shoulder at the origin of the object. Bofur was standing a few feet behind him. He had thrown his heavy mattock, killing the animal nearly instantly when his weapon crushed its skull.

Thorin had no time to express his thanks to Bofur, for now Azog turned his wrath on him. His left claw-arm raised, in his right hand he carried the log he had used on Fili. Thorin eyed the weapons had forgotten how big Azog actually was. He cursed himself silently: this was not the time for doubts or insecurities.

He raised his sword and gave it another almighty swing, but found it blocked by Azog's log. From the corner of his eye he saw the metal claw coming at him. He knew there was no time left to dodge it. He braced all the muscles in his body for the impact.  
The claw hit Thorin on the top of his shoulder, digging its sharp points deep into his flesh. He fell to his knees and let out a scream in a mixture of pain and rage. Azog took this opportunity and immediately lashed out with the log again, hitting Thorin in the chest. All the air was knocked out of him and he gasped for breath. Azog retreated a little, but only to think of his next move.

It took only seconds for Azog to walk up to Thorin again, claw raised. Before Thorin could stand up well enough, the claw was brought down on him once more. He managed to twist himself away for the most part, but could not prevent the claw hitting him in the forearm. It left a deep, nasty cut there. He could feel the warm blood seep out of the wound and onto his hands, making the grip on his sword slippery.  
The pain of his new wounds and the ones from the earlier battle combined, caused Thorin to feel drained of all his energy. It didn't matter how much Thorin willed himself to get up and slay that nasty pale Orc, his attempt was only half-hearted. He raised his sword a little from the ground, but it only took one blow from Azog's claw to make Thorin loose his slippery grip on his sword and drop it completely. Azog laughed at him, "So this is what the great Thorin Oakenshield is now: a pathetic excuse for a warrior".

Thorin felt his rage rise again at those words, but he couldn't move. The pain of his injuries dazed him. This was it, this was going to be the end. He would die here, at the hands of his greatest enemy, whom he had believed to have died already years ago. Azog was readying himself to deal out the final blow, which would end the Dwarf Prince's life. Thorin closed his eyes: no need to see this happening.  
Suddenly, out of the blue, Thorin heard another yell. Not one of pain, but one of rage. He felt something soar past him and heard an almighty crash, like two things had just collided.  
Thorin's eyes flew open, looking around to see what had happened. A few meters in front of him Azog was lying on his back, his arms swinging around angrily at something. No, someone!  
To his astonishment Thorin saw that someone was Bilbo. It looked like he had come running and thrown himself into the giant Orc, keeling him over.

Thorin saw his window of opportunity: Azog was too pre-occupied with Bilbo at the moment. This was his chance. With one last giant effort, he sprang to his feet and picked up his sword from the ground.  
Using all his remaining energy he ran over to where Azog was still fighting off Bilbo, the small Hobbit bravely holding on like a pest. Seeing his chance, Thorin raised his sword high into the air. With a last enraged scream he brought the sword down on Azog's chest. He pushed his blade down as far as it would go, until the sound of metal on rock told him it had fully gone through the body of his enemy.

The look on Azog's face was one of astonishment, this was not what he had expected. He had thought the Dwarf-prince finished. Bilbo, who was still on top of Azog, stabbed his sword down too, then rolled off the Orc as fast as he could.  
Azog gave one last splutter and took a few gurgling breaths, before going limp and moving no more. Thorin just stood looking down on his enemy's body. He took panting breaths, the pain returning to him now that the adrenaline of his kill was wearing off. He was actually fearing his knees would give out on him soon.

There was silence. The few Orcs that were still standing had fled when they knew their leader was killed. The Company looked from Thorin, to Azog's body, to Bilbo. They had all seen what happened, but looked like they still could not believe it.

Bilbo got to his feet slowly. His fight with Azog had not left him unscathed. The Orc had managed to give the Hobbit a few cuts with his claw.  
Bilbo avoided Thorin's gaze which was now directed at him. "That was the stupidest thing I have ever seen done" Thorin's stern voice told Bilbo. The Hobbit looked up at the Dwarf in astonishment. Even after this, Thorin seemed to have no faith in him. Bilbo sighed deeply and made to walk away to check on Fili and Kili.  
"Thank you" Thorin suddenly spoke to Bilbo, a wide smile appearing on his face. "I dare to say you saved my life". 

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****

Thanks for reading again!  
Like always, all reviews are appreciated! :-)


	6. Chapter 6

Bilbo kept his gaze on Thorin to see if he had heard correctly. The smile Thorin gave him told him that he indeed had. Bilbo returned the smile, finally feeling the appreciation for his actions. "It's okay" he said, waving Thorin's words of gratitude away, "I could not just watch you being killed, now could I?"

They were suddenly alarmed by a cry from Bofur, who had appeared from behind a large boulder.  
"Thorin!" he yelled, "you had better come over here, quick!" Thorin's face fell. "Fili, Kili" he whispered concernedly. He could guess why Bofur was calling him.  
He ran in the direction of Bofur's voice, forgetting his pain and injuries for the moment. The others were close behind him.

When Thorin rounded the corner and could look into the cave that had been used as the cell, he stopped dead in his tracks. He could see his nephews lying on the ground. Balin had knelt down next to Fili, who was still deep unconscious. The old Dwarf was checking on the younger Dwarf's wounds. Kili was still awake and still holding his brother's hand. Dwalin had sat down on the ground and was talking softly to him.

Even from a distance Thorin could see both Fili and Kili were severely injured. He felt a lump form in his throat as he moved closer to them. His eyes took in every blood spatter, every bruise, every cut on their bodies.

When Kili's eyes found him, a little smile appeared on his nephew's face. Thorin knelt down beside him, admiring the fact that Kili could still muster up a smile when his condition was so grave and he was in so much pain.  
"You're going to be fine, we will take care of you" Thorin said to Kili, placing a hand on his nephew's head. The warmth radiating of him worried Thorin. He too recognized the signs of infection.  
Slowly he stood up again and walked over to Gandalf. "Now what?" Thorin said, voice thick with emotion. No matter what he had just told Kili, he did not know what to do next. For the first time in his life, he felt helpless. The feeling was terrifying him, for he had always known what to do.

"We need to get them out of here, they need care" Gandalf said, stating the obvious.  
"I realize that" Thorin answered, "but I do not believe that we have the supplies nor medicine that they need. Kili's wound are infected and I will not even speak of the extent of Fili's wounds".  
Gandalf looked sadly at Thorin. "Do you trust me?" he asked after a while. Thorin slowly looked up at the wizard, clearly puzzled by the question. "I suppose so, yes" he finally answered hesitantly. Gandalf gave a weak smile, "then, please, follow me".

The entire Company looked at Gandalf incredulously. They wanted to follow him, but could not see how they were going to move Fili and Kili.  
"…How?" was all Thorin managed to utter, voicing what the entire Company thought. "I agree it will not be pleasant for them" Gandalf answered looking down sadly at the two brothers, "but they need help and like you said, we cannot provide it to them here".

Thorin was torn over the matter: he knew his nephews needed help desperately, but he did not like the idea of hurting them any further. Durin knows they had already experienced enough pain today.  
However, in the end, he knew he did not have a choice. "Take us wherever you want" Thorin sighed, sadness showing in his eyes. Gandalf smiled weakly. "Good" he said.

Dwalin looked apologetically at Kili. "I am sorry for this" he said to the young Dwarf. Kili let out a whimper, knowing what pain would come.  
Carefully Dwalin picked Kili up and draped him over his shoulders. "No…" Kili moaned out when Fili's hand slipped from his. "It's alright, lad" Dwalin comforted him, "we'll be taking care of Fili as well. We will not leave without him. Just relax, you're only hurting yourself more".  
The movement had caused Kili's wound to start bleeding a little again, but he did not make a sound anymore. Dwalin could feel the warmth coming off Kili's skin against his neck. "Are you okay?" he asked him after a little while. "Yes" Kili answered in a very weak voice. Dwalin was probably the only one who heard him answer.  
Thorin looked in Dwalin's direction, a very worried expression on his face. Dwalin returned the worry, but nodded his head to his leader to show that he was ready to move.

Moving Fili was a different matter. He had wounds and bruises covering his entire body, so Thorin had no idea how he was supposed to lift him. No matter where he would place his hands, it would always be on a bruise or cut. Thorin desperately looked up at Gandalf.  
"He is unconscious" the old wizard spoke reassuringly, "he will likely not feel a thing when he is moved". Thorin knew he was right. Still it took him another couple of minutes to muster up the courage to pick Fili up off the ground.  
He gently wrapped his large hands aound his nephew's broken body, as he carefully hung Fili over his shoulder. Thorin felt tears sting in his eyes, which he did not allow to fall. He cursed Azog under his breath. The damage that monster had done was nearly unbearable for Thorin to witness.

The entire Company watched Thorin as he stood still for a while, seemingly lost in thought. Bofur was the one to break the silence and brought Thorin out of his reverie. "Let's get out of this godforsaken place" he said. Everyone agreed to this, wanting to get as much distance between themselves and the Orc-hill as soon as they could. They knew that at any time more Orcs could be swarming up the hill for another attack.

Very slowly they made their way down the winding path. Their ears pricked for signs of a new Orc-attack. Luckily the air was quiet, except for the usual sounds of nature.  
Thorin and Dwalin walked at the tail of the Company. They walked slowest of all, careful with the precious, damaged loads on their shoulders. Thorin half-expected to hear the sounds of Fili waking up from the movements and pain. He was actually very glad that his oldest nephew was still deep unconscious by the time they reached the foot of the hill.  
Kili was conscious, hanging limply over Dwalin's shoulder, staring into empty space. He did not make a sound even though his pain must be excruciating.

To everyone's surprise the ponies had not run off. They had scattered a bit, but were easily rounded up and all accounted for.  
"Luck seems to be on our side" Gandalf said with as much cheer as seemed prudent. Thorin gave the wizard a very foul look. Luck was not what he would like to call this situation. Gandalf had missed this, but a chuckle from Bilbo told Thorin that he certainly had seen it. He gave the Hobbit a very small smile.

"What _are_ you doing?" Ori suddenly asked Gandalf. He watched the wizard walk past every pony and appeared to be looking the animals deep in the eyes. "I am… searching… for the right… candidate" Gandalf answered absentmindedly. He had stopped in front of one of the ponies, a black one that had been Gloín's earlier.  
"Master Gloín" Gandalf said, "you will be riding one of the other ponies for the remainder of our journey. Your pony has an important task to fulfil". Gloín looked at Gandalf with a blank expression on his face. He had absolutely no idea what the old wizard was talking about.  
"Gandalf?" Thorin asked uncertainly. He too did not understand the wizard's meaning. Instead of explaining himself, Gandalf waved silence to the entire Company.  
Everyone watched him as the old wizard placed a hand on either side of the pony's head. His face close to its forehead. He whispered words to the animal in a foreign language. Bilbo recognized it as being Elvish, for he spoke it a little himself. However, what the wizard was saying to the pony Bilbo could not understand.

With every word Gandalf whispered to the pony it got more excited. It stamped on the ground and swished its tail impatiently.  
Gandalf stepped away from the pony. For a moment it seemed to be looking at the wizard, almost as if awaiting something. "Go" Gandalf told the pony calmly.  
They were all startled when the pony suddenly took off at break-neck speed, galloping away over the plains and disappearing into the darkness. It seemed to be knowing exactly where it was going.  
"Why did you send away one of our ponies?" Thorin asked Gandalf crossly, "these ponies are our only chance of getting help for Fili and Kili!".  
Gandalf turned around to look at Thorin. "Oh, I did not send your pony away" he said, "well, not for good anyway. He is part of the getting help. Plus you have enough ponies for the journey. I do not think Fili or Kili will be able to ride on their own. No, that animal is merely delivering a message for us, so they know we are coming"… 

* * *

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So, thanks for reading again! :-)  
**All reviews are still appreciated.**


	7. Chapter 7

Thorin had no idea what Gandalf was talking about. "I hope you know what you are doing" he said grumpily, moving over to his own pony. The wound on his shoulder had become excruciatingly painful from Fili's weight, making him irritable.

Carefully Thorin lifted Fili onto his pony and then mounted as well, so he sat behind his nephew. Gandalf had watched Thorin's every move. "I do know what I am doing" the old wizard said in a very serious tone, "I am getting you the best help there is in this part of Middle Earth, but you have to trust me. Otherwise I cannot offer you any kind of help".  
Thorin looked at the wizard, shocked. Never before had someone spoken to him in such a tone and he knew the wizard meant every word he had said. Finally he just nodded, but for Gandalf that was enough. "Good" the wizard concluded their argument.

Everyone mounted their ponies. Dwalin lifted Kili onto his pony and sat down in the saddle behind him, like Thorin had done with Fili.  
"You still okay?" Dwalin asked Kili quietly. "It hurts a lot, but… yeah" Kili breathed out, giving a small moan when the pony took a step. Dwalin looked sadly at the back of Kili's head. He knew this ride would not be pleasant for the young Dwarf. "If we need to stop on the way, you just let me know" he said softly.

"It will be half a day's journey" Gandalf announced, "we will not ride fast, so Fili's and Kili's wounds will not be worsened. We should reach our destination around sunrise".  
The Company set off at an easy pace in the direction of their help, even though Gandalf was the only one who seemed to know what that actually entailed.  
Thorin rode next to Gandalf, holding on tightly to Fili's limp form. "Where are you taking us?" he asked. He did not like being kept in the dark about their destination. Gandalf smiled mischievously, seeing Thorin's irritation. "I cannot tell you, you will have to see it. There are actually only a few in this world who know of the existence of the place".  
Thorin was baffled by this much mystery, but asked no further questions, for he knew it was pointless. Gandalf would never answer them. He would indeed just have to trust that Gandalf was doing the right thing, no matter how much he hated it.

They rode in silence for most of the journey. The deep night-time darkness surrounded them. Even the moon and stars were obscured by clouds, their light not able to peer through.  
Sitting on his pony, rocking softly with the movements of its paces, Thorin felt his energy rapidly being drained. The pain from the fights felt even worse, the wounds on his shoulder and forearm were still bleeding slowly and throbbed painfully.  
He had one arm tightly around Fili. He could feel his nephew's shallow breaths beneath his arm, telling him Fili was still alive and had not yet given up his fight.

Bilbo was riding his pony Myrtle again. His hands holding the reins, were resting on the pony's mane. Ever since their rescue he had started to shake. He was very cold and exhausted. He was sore from the journey over the Orc's shoulder and his fight with Azog. The cuts he had sustained were stinging in the cool night-air.  
The past day had been the most terrifying one is his life. At this moment he could not remember why he had ever left Bag End to participate in this quest. It was not even his battle to fight.  
He sighed deeply. It did not matter. He was in the situation now, so he would just have to deal with it.

Bilbo looked over at Thorin, who rode a little in front of him. Fili still hung limply in his arms, still unconscious. By the way Thorin let his shoulders hang down, Bilbo could see that he too was tired and hurt.  
On his right Dwalin rode with Kili. Bilbo could hear Dwalin tell a story to Kili in a soft, deep voice. He did not recognize it, so he reckoned it probably was a Dwarf's tale.  
Kili's eyes were open, staring into the dark distance. He seemed to be listening intently to Dwalin's story, an expression of pain on his face. Concentrating on the story was most likely the only thing that kept him from screaming out. 

* * *

They rode on, seemingly endless. The first signs of the nearing morning appeared in the sky. Thorin remembered Gandalf's words about reaching their destination around sunrise. Were they getting close?  
Suddenly Gandalf let out a cheery sort of cry. "There it is" he said happily, nodding with his head in a westward direction.  
"Uhm… are you sure?" Bilbo asked. There was nothing else they could see, apart from a lot of trees and a very steep, rocky mountainside in the distance.  
"I didn't say we are there yet" Gandalf said smiling, "but we are getting close now".  
Humming softly to himself, he turned his horse in the direction he had indicated. The rest of the Company followed in silence.

They entered what seemed to be a large, dense forest. It looked like Bilbo's pony could sense something good coming, for she began walking faster, ears pricked forward.  
Out of the blue Bilbo felt as though he had been riding through a waterfall. He immediately looked around at the source for this sensation, but he could see nothing. Hearing the surprised cries from the others, Bilbo knew that they had felt it too. He actually looked down at his clothes to make sure they really weren't wet. Nothing, he was totally, completely dry. He did not understand a thing about this.  
Bilbo heard Gandalf chuckle and found the wizard looking at him. "What was that?" Bilbo asked confused.  
"That, my dear Bilbo, was Elf-magic. It protects the borders of this country" Gandalf answered.  
"You mean we have gone back to Rivendell?" Bilbo asked. "No" Gandalf said, "Rivendell is not the only place where Elves live".  
Bilbo was totally lost at this point. He knew they were in Elf-country at the moment. Rivendell, Lórien and the Woodland Realm were the only places he knew where Elves lived, but he was fairly certain he was in neither of these now.

The trees grew less dense the further they went into the forest.  
"Is that… a road?" Thorin said suddenly, pointing a little to his left. "Ah" Gandalf said happily, "yes it is. Actually, that is exactly what we are looking for".  
The road was narrow and sandy, with a neat line of tall trees on each side of it. There were many hoofprints in the sand, like horses were ridden up and down this road frequently.

"How much further?" Thorin asked, looking worriedly at Fili who had just let out a groan. "Just around the corner" Gandalf answered. A little further ahead the road indeed took a left turn and disappeared out of sight.  
Fili stirred in Thorin's arms and let out another groan. "It's okay Fili" Thorin said softly, "we're on the pony. Help is nearly there, just a little further". Fili's eyes fluttered open, taking in his surroundings. Very slowly he nodded his head to indicate that he had heard his uncle's words.

When they rounded the corner in the road, Bilbo actually let out a gasp. This was not at all what he had expected.  
There were no more trees on the side of the road. Instead there were beautiful green meadows, fenced off with dark wooden fences. In the meadows were two dozens of tall horses of the most beautiful kind Bilbo had ever seen. He could see the road ended onto a small sort of square about a hundred yards further. On the other side of the square was a large wooden pavilion. Behind that was a small village, consisting solely of wooden houses. There were about twenty of them. A little away to the left of the square stood another large wooden building, clearly the stables.  
Behind the village the steep, rocky mountain side rose high. On all other sides it was surrounded by the dense forest.

Bilbo smiled to himself. This place was completely hidden from strangers. If you did not know it, you would probably never get there. The sight of this village, the first rays of sunlight shining on it, made Bilbo feel completely peaceful. For a moment he forgot all his troubles, worries and pains.  
He looked to his left and right, to the bright green grass in the meadows. The horses raised their heads as the newcomers came down the road. Between these tall horses, Bilbo could see one smaller pony.  
"Hey, that is…" Bilbo began, looking up at Gandalf. He found the wizard smiling broadly at him.  
"You sent the pony here to bring the message that we were coming" Bilbo said reaching the conclusion himself. Gandalf just nodded, his smile widening.

"They are expecting us" Kili said very softly, he had overheard Bilbo and Gandalf and was looking ahead at the square. Dwalin was the only one to hear him say the words.  
Indeed Kili was right. In the middle of the square a tall, blonde Elf was waiting. He stood still like a statue, the soft wind playing with strands of his long hair. His blue eyes looked down the road at the nearing Company, a very serious expression on his face. "Rhav!" he suddenly called over his shoulder to someone out of sight, "they are here"… 

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**Thanks again for reading, all reviews are still appreciated!**  
**This chapter and the next one are a bit tricky for me, since I will be introducing a place and a character of my own invention. Hopefully, you'll like it.**


	8. Chapter 8

Gandalf was the first to ride his horse onto the square.  
"Legolas!" he greeted the blonde Elf who had been waiting for their arrival. The Elf gave Gandalf a smile and returned the greetings, but his face immediately turned serious again. His eyes had found the two injured Dwarves as the rest of the Company rode onto the square as well.  
"We ride with two injured" Gandalf said, "that is why we came here, we need help".  
Legolas merely nodded and turned his back on the Company, walking off the square and into the pavilion.  
Thorin instantly felt his anger rise. "You took us to Elves" he growled at Gandalf, "what is it with them anyway?! Are we supposed to follow him or not? Why isn't he being clear?"  
Gandalf gave him a disapproving look. "We wait here" the old wizard said, "Legolas is a good healer, but he is not the best that lives here. I am sure he is just bringing her".  
Thorin gave Gandalf another glaring look, but commented no more.

"What exactly is this place?" Thorin finally asked to break the silence. "This small village" Gandalf began like he was telling a fairytale, "is solely inhabited by Elves. It does not really have a name, most Elves just call it the Hidden Village. Well, you can understand why that is! The Elves that live here are a gathering of Elves from Rivendell, Lórien and Mirkwood".  
"Why did they leave their homes?" Thorin asked a little more interested than before.  
"Some because they had to, others because they wanted to" Gandalf answered, "Legolas for example is a son of the king of the Woodland Realm, but he cannot forgive his father an incident that happened some time ago. That is why he came here".  
"He is Thranduil's son?" Thorin asked incredulously. "Yes" Gandalf said, "but, trust me, he hates him as much as you do. You can ask him for his story later, but now we need to tend to Fili and Kili and your own wounds as well".

Legolas returned to the square, followed closely by a female Elf. She was slim, around the same height as Legolas. Her long, black hair she wore in a single braid, which reached to halfway down her shoulder blades. Her smooth skin had a light cream-colour, her eyes hazel. She wore a long-sleeved, scarlet dress. Bilbo smiled to himself as he saw her bare feet. He was glad he wasn't the only one anymore without shoes on.  
"Rhavaniel" Gandalf greeted the new arrival. "Gandalf" she answered with a wide smile, "you know our welcoming rituals are usually different, but I hear you travel with two injured? Or actually three injured, I see". Thorin found her looking at the wounds on his shoulder and forearm.

The Elf walked up to Thorin, who was still on his pony with Fili in front of him.  
"You must be Thorin Oakenshield" she said, "I have heard a lot about you". Thorin did not know what to say, instead he just shot her a glaring look. He did not really like the Elf coming so close to him.  
"My name is Rhavaniel" she said, not taken aback by Thorin's behaviour at all, "you can rest here and we will take care of your injured ones. _If_ you want to accept our help of course".  
Thorin looked past her at Legolas, who had resumed his original position in the middle of the square, speaking softly to Gandalf. "Alright" he answered curtly after some time. Reluctantly he decided to accept the Elves' help. He knew they desperately needed it.

Carefully Thorin got off his pony and slowly lifted Fili off as well, hanging him over his shoulder again. Dwalin had done the same with Kili.  
"You can follow me" Rhavaniel said, "Legolas will get the rest of you settled".  
The others dismounted as well, while Legolas was explaining them where they could take their ponies and where they themselves would be staying.

Thorin and Dwalin followed Rhavaniel into the pavilion. It was as beautiful on the inside as it was on the outside. Everywhere were woodcarvings on the ceilings, and statues, probably of important or famous Elves. They passed through a large room with several comfortable chairs and entered what seemed like a glass conservatory overlooking a stunning garden. It was comfortable inside: a fire was crackling in the hearth, the sunlight bathed it in a warm light. Here too, several couches and comfortable chairs were placed along with some small tables. One wall was entirely taken up by bookshelves with hundreds of books on it in many different languages.

Rhavaniel motioned to the couches. Dwalin and Thorin understood and each laid Fili and Kili down on a couch. Kili immediately rolled himself onto his uninjured side with a painful grunt, so he could keep an eye on his brother. Dwalin sat down on the ground, taking in Kili's every movement. He could see his sweating had increased. The fever was rising as the infection slowly took over his body.

Fili just lay absolutely still. He was afraid to move, for everything hurt him.  
Thorin sat down on the ground next to his oldest nephew. Fili was looking up at Thorin without actually seeing him, his breathing suddenly becoming fast.  
Thorin placed a hand on Fili's chest. "Easy Fili" he said softly, "you are going to be alright, they are going to take care of you".  
"Uncle" Fili breathed out, sounding terrified, "no, you have to run. Azog will kill you! Please, go now!"  
"Sht… it's alright" was the only thing Thorin could think of saying, keeping his hand on Fili's chest.

"He's hallucinating. It's probably the pain" Rhavaniel said, appearing beside Thorin. She was carrying a large bowl of steaming water and a stack of small towels.  
Thorin eyed the bowl suspiciously as Rhavaniel began unbuttoning Fili's shirt. It seemed to contain boiled water with several different types of herbs. A strong, spicy smell was rising up from it.

Once Fili's upper body was bared the extent of his injuries became clear. Thorin inhaled sharply, seeing his nephew's chest, stomach and arms covered in dark bruises and many cuts. He expected his back not to be any better.

Rhavaniel drenched one of the towels in the water and made to lower it to Fili's chest. But before the fabric even made contact with Fili, Thorin suddenly grabbed her wrist tightly. She looked at him with a mixture of surprise and question.  
"I am just trying to help him" Rhavaniel said. "What is in that water?" Thorin demanded to know, not in his friendliest tone. "It is an ancient recipe of the Elves. I cannot tell you of it, for it is secret" she answered patiently. Thorin shook his head crossly, "not good enough, tell me".  
Rhavaniel looked straight at him, then suddenly lowered the wet towel onto the still bleeding cut on Thorin's forearm.  
"What are you d…" Thorin began to protest, but stopped mid-sentence. There had been a constant, painful stinging in the deep cut which now slowly ebbed away into a dull throbbing pain. He looked down at his arm, half-expecting the wound to have vanished. The cut was definitely still there, but the pain had numbed. He wanted to say something, but was unable to utter a word.  
Rhavaniel did not take her eyes off him. "See, I mean no harm".  
Thorin was still baffled by the effects of this Elfish medicine, but in the end slowly nodded his approval.

Rhavaniel gently freed her wrist from Thorin's hand and went back to work. She handled Fili very carefully, trying not to hurt him any further.  
Little by little Fili had awoken more and was no longer hallucinating. The Elfish medicine taking effect immediately. He was silent, but his eyes were more focussed, they followed Rhavaniel's hands as she washed his wounds and bruises. His breathing had become slower. Finally he seemed to calm down a little.

"It hurts… less" Fili whispered in a very tired voice. "That's good" Rhavaniel said, "how are you feeling further?" Fili took his time to answer. "Exhausted" he finally whispered. "Once I have cleaned and bandaged your wounds, you can take a nice long sleep" Rhavaniel said. Fili smiled weakly. The foresight of sleep was a blessing to him.

Silently Rhavaniel finished cleaning and bandaging the wounds on Fili's chest and stomach.  
"Could you help me turn him onto his front?" She asked Thorin.  
Together they managed to turn him over, although it earned them a couple of groans and winces from the young Dwarf.  
Hearing his brother utter sounds of pain, Kili started shifting and tried to sit up. "Fili…" he moaned out, attempting to push himself upright.  
"No, Kili, don't get up. Stay down" Dwalin said reassuringly, coming into action at once. "Fili is alright, don't worry". Kili winced when Dwalin gently held him down. "Stay still" Dwalin said once again, "we will take care of your wounds in a minute, just lie still".  
Kili did what Dwalin asked of him, calming down a little again and taking panting breaths. The movements had cost him a lot of energy, the pain of his injuries renewing.  
Thorin looked gratefully round at Dwalin. He was glad Dwalin had stayed to keep watch over Kili. He knew his youngest nephew was scared, even though Kili would not easily admit to it.

Rhavaniel finished treating the wounds and bruises on Fili's back. She could feel his deep breathing beneath her hands as she applied the last of the bandages.  
Fili's face was turned to her side. He had his eyes open, but was looking at nothing in particular. She could tell Fili was only moments away from falling into a deep sleep.

"Are you lying comfortably?" she asked him. When Fili nodded soundlessly, she draped a thick, woolen blanket over him and made sure he was completely tucked in. "If you are cold or need anything else, just let us know, okay?" she added.

When Rhavaniel made to stand up, she could feel Fili's fingers brush against her arms. She knelt down again when she found him looking at her, his fingers moving as if he tried to reach for her. "Is there anything you need?" she asked. Fili's eyes locked with hers. "Help my brother" he said in a very weak voice, "help my brother like you helped me". "Off course I will" Rhavaniel said, "I am going to make sure your brother will be alright. Don't worry about that now. Just sleep, you need it".  
Fili slowly closed his eyes, comforted by her words. It took only a few seconds before he had fallen into a deep sleep. 

* * *

**Thanks again for reading :-)  
All reviews are appreciated!**


	9. Chapter 9

**First I want to thank you all for the lovely reviews. :-)  
In some the following chapters you will find out more about the Hidden Village and its inhabitants, and of course a little more insight into how Legolas and Rhavaniel ended up there.  
Also, I would like to apologize in advance if the updates for the following chapters are not as soon as you are used to of me. But my family seems to have planned to keep me occupied for about 30 hours a day this Christmas...**

So for now, enjoy reading and all your reviews and opinions are still highly appreciated.  


* * *

Rhavaniel stayed with Fili for a few more minutes, making sure he would be alright and had really fallen asleep. When he did not wake up or move she stood up, leaving Thorin alone at Fili's side.  
"I'll go get some fresh water, then I will have a look at Kili's wounds" she said to him and silently walked away. Thorin did not move a muscle and kept sitting on the ground next to Fili, listening to his nephew's deep breathing.

Kili was lying still on his back, head fallen to the side, eyes fixed on his sleeping brother again. Sweat was standing out on his face and his breathing was quite fast. Suddenly he reached for Dwalin's shoulder, causing the older Dwarf to give him a questioning look.  
"I'm scared" Kili whispered softly. "I know" Dwalin whispered back, his expression changing to one of sadness. Indeed he had already seen the glimpse of panic in Kili's eyes.  
"I was just so afraid that I would lose Fili today" Kili said in a choked voice. "So were we…we feared we would lose all three of you. You, Fili _and_ Bilbo" Dwalin whispered, thinking back to the hours of uncertainty and fear the Company had had to endure while waiting for darkness to set in at the foot of the Orc-hill.  
To keep himself occupied and his mind off those horrible thoughts, Dwalin began peeling away the layers of clothing covering up Kili's wound. The young Dwarf's eyes shifted from his brother to Dwalin's hands, but he made no comment.

Kili had seen the change in his brother since he had been treated with the Elfish medicine. How he had calmed down almost immediately, how most of the pain seemed to have left him. It made Kili nearly impatient for Rhavaniel to return and treat his wound too, for it hurt unbearably.  
All at once, everything that had happened that day came crashing down on him. He just couldn't take it any longer. He felt so scared, positively terrified. He could no longer control his emotions: his sweating increased even further, his breathing became still faster and tremors rocked his body.  
"Calm down, Kili. You're going to be alright" Dwalin said soothingly, seeing the young Dwarf descending into the panic attack. "You are safe, no-one will harm you anymore". KIli let out a whimper in reply, but barely calmed down.

Rhavaniel walked back in carrying two large bowls of steaming water and fresh towels. Dwalin moved over a bit to make room for her. She knelt down beside Kili, looking down at his now bared wound. Dried up blood was covering his entire side, puss oozing out of the wound slowly.  
Thorin looked over at his youngest nephew sadly. He too had noticed Kili's breakdown. Something he had been sure of Kili would not give in to. But the pain his nephew experienced at the moment was immense, he too knew that.  
"Will he be alright?" Thorin asked even though he feared the answer. "I think he will be" Rhavaniel said seriously, "although it is not the wound itself that is worrying me, it is the infection. To try and get rid of that I will have to clean the wound extremely thoroughly. Which will be painful…"  
"It cannot be any worse than it is now…" Kili choked out softly, but they all knew that was not entirely true. Rhavaniel gave him a little reassuring smile. "I'll be careful" she said softly.

Dwalin prepared himself for the pain he knew would be coming for Kili. Something both of them were obviously not looking forward to.  
The moment the wet towel touched Kili's wound, he let out a groan, tensing all the muscles in his body. His hands formed into fists and his face screwed up in pain. Dwalin took Kili's wrists in his hands, speaking softly to him. He could feel Kili's pulse race beneath his fingers.

Rhavaniel worked as fast as she could. She did not like hurting Kili, but the wound needed to be cleaned, the infection needed to be washed out of it.  
Thorin, who still sat on the ground next to Fili, just stared at the floor trying to block out the sounds of pain coming from Kili. He tried to concentrate on other things: Fili's breathing, the dirt and blood on his own hands and the flowers outside in the garden. But it was to no avail. No matter how hard he tried, all he kept hearing was Kili. Oh, how it ached his heart to hear his nephew like this!

"Nearly done" Rhavaniel said, looking up for only a second.  
"You hear that, Kili?" Dwalin whispered to him, "just a little longer, she's nearly done". Kili did not seem to register anything anybody was telling him. He was completely lost in his pain.  
Rhavaniel lowered the wet towel onto Kili's side one final time. The muscles in his stomach tightened again as he tried to move away from the pain. Another whimper escaped his lips, fists clenching even tighter.

Carefully Rhavaniel washed away the last of the dirt out of the wound, before inspecting it thoroughly.  
"There, all done" she said, after concluding that it looked good enough.  
Dwalin sighed in relief just as much as Kili. "I will only have to put a bandage on it, then you too can sleep" Rhavaniel said. "The bandaging will not hurt anymore" she added, seeing Kili's wide eyes looking at her in fear. His breathing was still faster than normal, his heart rate still a little elevated, but the worst of the panic and fear seemed to have left him.

It wasn't long before Kili's wound too was bandaged and he was tucked in under two woollen blankets. He was not really sleeping, just dozing. He was still sweating heavily and breathing a little fast. Even under the load of blankets he was shivering.  
"He needs to be kept warm" Rhavaniel said looking down at Kili, for the first time with a bit of worry on her face. "His fever needs to come down, that is our main concern for now" she said.

Once Dwalin was sure Kili was lying reasonably comfortable and had enough blankets to keep him warm, he stood up and walked over to Thorin. The Dwarf prince rose to his feet when his comrade neared.  
"I will go check up on the others" Dwalin said, "are you going to be alright here?"  
Thorin nodded. "Sure" he said, "I will stay here in case one of them wakes up". Dwalin placed a hand on Thorin's uninjured shoulder and gave him a stern look. "Have your wounds looked over, do not be stubborn now" he said. Thorin did not actually protest, but the look on his face spoke of uncertainty. "I mean it" Dwalin said sternly, before he walked out of the conservatory.

Once they were alone Thorin noticed Rhavaniel was looking at him. He knew she had heard Dwalin as well and was waiting for him to make his move. "Alright" Thorin sighed, beginning to loosen his armour and shirt, "let's get this over with".  
He bared his shoulder and rolled up his sleeve to reveal his injuries, while he sat down on the ground again. Rhavaniel quietly sat down next to him.  
Thorin looked at her. She sat waiting for his sign with a clean towel in her hands. He nodded to her curtly to indicate she had his permission.

Rhavaniel moved closer to Thorin. His muscles felt tense beneath her hands as she inspected the damage. There were three deep puncture wounds from Azog's claw, which had bled quite severely.  
Like before, the stinging pain eased nearly immediately when the Elfish medicine touched his skin. Rhavaniel's hands felt soft and warm and he realised they had a calming effect on him. The constant tension that had been in his body gradually flowed away. Thorin allowed his thoughts to take over. Everything that had happened passed his mind's eye again. The night-raid by the Orcs, Fili and Kili left for dead on the floor of the cave, his fight with Azog, the way Bilbo had saved his life. He made a mental note to thank the Hobbit for that once more when he next saw him.

Before he knew it Rhavaniel sat back and let go of his shoulder. He looked down on it and saw it was now neatly bandaged and not nearly as painful anymore.  
"Now, let's look at that arm a little better" Rhavaniel said, holding out her hand to invite Thorin to stretch out his injured arm. He obliged without protest.

Rhavaniel rolled up the sleeves of her dress up to over her elbows, drenched the towel in the bowl of water and set to work.  
Thorin looked at his arm as Rhavaniel was cleaning the deep gash that was there, watching her hands move in smooth motions across his dirtied skin.

Halfway through the process Thorin suddenly wrapped a strong hand around Rhavaniel's wrist. Careful not to hurt her he turned her arm over, so the bottom-side of it was facing up. His face showed disbelief and shock as he looked down at her arm. A look of utter sadness appeared on her beautiful face as she realised what the Dwarf prince was looking at.  
Thorin raised his eyes to her and suddenly felt compassion, something he never imagined he would feel for an Elf. "What are those?" he asked in a sad whisper…


	10. Chapter 10

When Rhavaniel did not answer immediately, Thorin knew he had asked a painful question.  
He looked down at her arm again. There were five large scars, clearly visible against her light skin. They were straight, each about fifteen centimetres long and all about an inch apart. Whatever wounds had formed into these scars, they looked deliberate, like someone had willingly made deep cuts in her arm.

Rhavaniel was quiet for a long time, which made Thorin feel even more embarrassed. He had started to feel at ease around her and it was never his intention to hurt her, even though she was an Elf. After all she had been good to him, his nephews and the rest of his Company today.

"I call them my battle scars…" Rhavaniel simply answered after a while. Thorin looked at her incredulously, "you are a warrior?!" Rhavaniel gave him a sad smile. "No, no I am not. Not all wars are decided on the battlefield, master Oakenshield" she said. Thorin did not understand. In his mind wars were always decided on the battlefield. "I don't understand" he said in the end, just voicing his feelings.  
"Gandalf probably told you a little bit about us who live here" Rhavaniel started. Thorin nodded, "he said you were all Elves from Rivendell, Lórien and Mirkwood".  
"Indeed we are" Rhavaniel went on, "I, myself, am from Mirkwood, as is Legolas. We came here together. Actually we were among the first ones to live here".  
"Why did you leave your home?" Thorin asked her, especially interested in that matter. He guessed that the origin of her scars were tied to that.  
"These scars are not an accident" Rhavaniel said, confirming Thorin's thoughts, "but you have probably already worked that out. I left Mirkwood because of its king, Thranduil". Upon hearing that name Thorin let out an angry grunt, causing Rhavaniel to smile briefly.

"Thranduil did this to you?" Thorin asked, sounding nearly angry. Slowly Rhavaniel nodded, "yes, he did". Thorin shook his head madly, giving her a confused look, "why?"  
"One day Legolas, me and some others were coming back from a trip" Rhavaniel started, while now resuming cleaning the wound on Thorin's forearm.  
"We were nearing home, when some Orcs attacked us. We were managing well in defending ourselves, until three Orcs had surrounded Legolas and threatened to kill him". Thorin listened in silence. Rhavaniel had denied being a warrior, but it sounded like she did know how to fight. Slaying Orcs was not something you managed when not knowing how to wield a weapon.  
"I did not hesitate and shot those foul beasts with my bow" Rhavaniel continued, "even till this moment Legolas claims I saved his life that day. Personally, I believe he would have managed by himself eventually, but this surely was the safest way to go. Legolas, of course, will not hear it and insists that I saved him. That is also what he told Thranduil, his father, after we returned home".

Rhavaniel temporarily interrupted her story to have a good look at the wound on Thorin's arm, to make sure it was all cleaned. Thorin suspected her of taking this moment to gather up the courage for the rest of her story.  
"Thranduil was not too happy about my actions" she continued, now carefully bandaging Thorin's arm.  
"He found it embarrassing for his son that his life had to be saved. He found it humiliating for himself too, for it was his son. His bloodline. I had never seen him in such a rage before". She fell silent again. "I told him off for getting angry with me, for I thought he was being very unreasonable. Shouldn't have done that, I see that now. It enraged him like you cannot imagine and he decided that I needed to be punished for it, for contempt of the king. So…"

Rhavaniel fell silent once more. Thorin looked up at her. He thought he saw something sparkle in her eyes that looked like tears. "He did those cuts in punishment" Thorin finished for her. Rhavaniel nodded in agreement. Thorin cursed softly in Khuzdul, his mind not comprehending why someone would want to hurt her. He, himself, would be extremely thankful if it had been Fili or Kili she had saved from Orcs. "How can someone in their right mind do something so heinous?" Thorin said, wondering out loud. "That is the thing" Rhavaniel answered softly, "I do not think he was in his right mind. I do not know why, but I could just... sense... that something was off".

"You left after that?" Thorin asked after a minute of silence. "Yes" she answered, "there was no way I would stay there any longer. Not after what happened. I left Mirkwood that same day and stayed for a while in a well-known resting place for the Elves in the surrounding area".  
"It must have been very hard to just leave your home behind?" Thorin asked. The Dwarves had been driven and forced out of Erebor by a dragon. They hadn't had a choice, but she had decided to leave it all behind. Thorin could not begin to comprehend how difficult that must have been, just departing from everything you have ever known.  
"Yes" Rhavaniel answered, "but to me there was no other way. I had grown afraid…" She spoke the last sentence as if it embarrassed her to admit it. "What about Legolas?" Thorin asked, "you said you came here together".  
"When Legolas found out what Thranduil had done to me, they had a huge fight. Legolas rode out to find me and persuade me to come back, but when he saw what exactly his father had done and realized I would not return, he decided to stay with me. I think he expected me to change my mind at some point and we would return then. But that was before we came here… We are happy here and as far as I know he has no desire to see Thranduil again".

Rhavaniel finished bandaging the wound on Thorin's arm. They sat in silence for some time. Thorin looked over at Kili, who had finally fallen asleep too.  
"How did you end up here?" Thorin asked, for that was the only question still unanswered to him.  
"Legolas and I wandered around for a while. We lived in the wild and stayed in Rivendell for a few months. During our wanderings we ran into this place purely coincidental. At that time it was only inhabited by four Elves. They welcomed us warmly and we never left again. That was close to ten years ago now".

Rhavaniel slowly rose to her feet and Thorin followed her example.  
"I will be staying here with Fili and Kili in case one of them wakes up" Thorin said. Rhavaniel nodded absentmindedly, "there is another couch for you. Take some rest, you need it too". She walked in the direction of the door, making to leave Thorin alone with his nephews.  
"Thank you" Thorin said softly when she had nearly reached the door. "You're welcome" she answered with a smile.

As soon as the door closed behind her, Rhavaniel leant back against an outside wall of the conservatory. Had a Dwarf really just been listening to her tale? And he had even been friendly to her! She shook her head. It looked like miracles did still exist in this world. 

* * *

Bilbo sat on a low stool while Legolas treated the cuts he had sustained to his arms and feet. There were in a dead-ending hallway of the pavilion.

"I see the way you look at her" Bilbo suddenly said. Legolas looked up at the Hobbit with his piercing blue eyes. "Rhavaniel?" Legolas asked, although he already knew that was who they were talking about. Bilbo nodded soundlessly in reply.  
The Elf seemed to think of how best to answer. "I care for her more than anyone can realize" he finally said, "that is why I stayed with her. Look at her arms, she still bears the scars of what my father did to her. He too knows I love her, so hurting her in that way is nigh unforgiveable to me". Bilbo indeed had seen the scars on Rhavaniel's arms. She had had her sleeves rolled up when he walked into her after she had taken care of Thorin and his nephews. She had seen him looking at the scars and immediately pulled down her sleeves again. Bilbo had asked Legolas about it, who had told him their history.

"I do not think you need any bandages, your wounds are not deep" Legolas concluded treating Bilbo's injuries.  
"Thank you, it feels much better" Bilbo answered politely.  
"Now, we'll get you some breakfast and you can meet the others" Legolas said cheerily as he stood up.  
Bilbo followed Legolas through the pavilion again and out onto a large, light porch. In the middle a fire was burning broadly. The members of Thorin's Company sat here and there on the ground or on cushions, all eating hungrily.  
Smelling the food, Bilbo realized how hungry he himself was. As if Legolas had read his mind, the Elf shoved a fully-laden plate in his hands. Bilbo gratefully accepted it and sat down on one of the few still unoccupied cushions. Legolas sat down next to him.

"Are these all Elves that live here?" Bilbo asked, looking around at the other Elves sitting on the porch.  
"Yes, they are" Legolas answered, "at the moment we live here with twelve. Haradion and Nimmeth were the first ones to come to the village. They practically built it". Legolas pointed to a woman with chocolate-brown hair and a man with blonde hair. "Why did they come here?" Bilbo asked. "They both are from Lórien. Their only son was killed by a bear during a solo hunting trip. They left a while after it happened, for everything there reminded them too much of their son". Bilbo looked at the couple who appeared to be content now. "Sorry to hear that" he mumbled.

"Next to them are Milui and Melui" Legolas indicated two red-haired women, "they are twins from Rivendell. Then there is Meleth and Hilneth sitting next to them, brother and sister from Lórien. They are the youngest to live here and simply came looking for adventure".  
Bilbo looked at the Elves as Legolas told about them. "Who are they?" he asked. His eyes had found three clearly battle-scarred Elves, who were talking softly to Rhavaniel. They all had multiple scars covering their faces and hands.  
"Those are Craban, Herdir and Glandur" Legolas continued, "they fought beside Elrond in the War of the Last Alliance. The battle in which the Dark Lord Sauron was defeated and Isildur obtained the One Ring. They sustained quite heavy injuries during that battle, thus the scars. They call coming here their retirement". Legolas chuckled happily at his last remark, "those three are the oldest ones around here". Bilbo nodded impressed.  
"Well, you know Rhavaniel" Legolas continued his 'presentation'. "And that is Ernil" Legolas said, seeing Bilbo look at a young black-haired Elf. To Bilbo's horror he realized the Elf was missing his entire left arm. "Ernil is from Mirkwood, like me and Rhav. He was attacked by a Warg when he was an Elfling, that is how he lost his arm. He came here only a few months ago, but he refuses to talk about his reasons to leave Mirkwood. Can't be anything good...".

As Legolas mentioned Wargs, Bilbo was suddenly reminded of the attack he had experienced the day before and fell deadly silent.  
"You saw what happened to Fili and Kili, didn't you?" Legolas suddenly asked him, reading Bilbo's silence perfectly well. At first Bilbo just nodded, but before he knew it, his entire story of the last days spilled out of him. He just let go of every feeling of fear, pain, relief and even more fear he had felt.  
Legolas listened in silence, a grave look on his face. Bilbo told him about how he had seen Kili getting injured, being captured by the Orcs, Azog torturing Fili, the battle of the Dwarves and the Orcs on the hill, himself fighting with Azog and Thorin ending up killing the pale Orc, their journey over here...

It took Bilbo over an hour to complete his tale. In the meantime most of the other Dwarves and Elves had fallen silent. Rhavaniel and the three warriors from Rivendell had joined Legolas in listening to Bilbo, some others had fallen asleep or had left the porch to return to their daily activities and duties.  
When Bilbo finished his story, Legolas looked at him with a smile. "Thank you for sharing" he said. Bilbo returned the smile, "you're welcome, but now I am very tired".  
"We can understand that" Rhavaniel said, "you have been through a lot. I will show you where you can rest".

Bilbo followed her into the pavilion again and into another room with more couches. On the walls in this room where several large paintings, depicting beautiful nature scenes and some paintings of horses. Bilbo stared at them in awe for some moments, taking in their beauty.  
"If there is anything you need, just let us know" Rhavaniel said, before turning around and leaving.  
Bilbo laid himself down on one of the couches and did not register much anymore, for it was only mere seconds before he was deep asleep.

Rhavaniel decided not to go back to the porch, but to check up on Fili and Kili one more time and see if Thorin needed anything.  
Slowly she opened the door to the conservatory, careful not to make any noise and took in the scene before her eyes.  
Fili and Kili had not moved at all and were still comfortably sleeping on their couches, covered by the warm woollen blankets. Thorin, on the other hand, had not chosen this comfort for himself. He had laid out his thick coat on the ground, in the middle between the couches his nephews occupied. He too was vast asleep, his strong arms wrapped around his chest to provide more warmth.

Quietly Rhavaniel made her way over to the sleeping Dwarf prince, picking up another woollen blanket. She knelt down beside Thorin's sleeping form and carefully covered him up with it. He was usually a vigilant sleeper, but now he did not seem to notice the presence of someone around him.  
Rhavaniel moved over to Fili, who was sleeping deeply and quietly as well. The bruise on his neck had darkened to nearly black, which was visible just above his blanket. The rest of his bruises would probably not be any better.  
Kili, too, was deep asleep. Rhavaniel carefully placed a hand on his forehead, feeling his skin for extreme warmth. It felt somewhat cooler then before, but still was way too warm. He was shivering occasionally.

Rhavaniel stood for a moment looking down upon the little, sleeping family. They looked peaceful now, after a time of fear, pain and worry. But she was certain the three of them would be fine. She turned around and silently left the conservatory again, leaving the Dwarves to sleep and heal… 

* * *

**Thanks for reading again!  
Still, all reviews are appreciated :-)**


	11. Chapter 11

Fili awoke with a start. It was completely dark outside. He was slightly surprised by this, for the last thing he remembered it had been morning and bright daylight had shone. Had he really slept that long? He did not remember much from the previous day, except for a lot of pain.

Without moving Fili looked around the room. The conservatory itself was dimly lit by some large candles and a fire still crackling merely in the hearth.  
He saw Thorin sleeping on the ground a few feet away from him. His uncle was lying on his side. Some of his long mane had fallen in front of his face and his bandaged arm was just visible from under the blanket covering him.  
A few feet away on Thorin's other side, Fili could see Kili's figure. Kili, too, was lying on his side. He had his back turned towards Fili, making it impossible to see the state he was in.

"Kili?" Fili said. His voice was soft, but because of the quietness in the conservatory the word still carried clearly through it. There was no movement from Kili, not even the smallest stir in recognition.  
"Kili?' Fili said louder this time. When there still was no sign of life from his brother, Fili tried to push himself into a sitting position. He let out a muffled scream and allowed himself fall back almost immediately as the movement angered his bruises and sent immense pain through his entire body.

Fili's cry of pain instantly awoke Thorin. He was by his nephew's side in a flash.  
"What happenend? Are you alright?" he asked. Fili was breathing hard, trying to deal with the pain which was only slowly ebbing away.  
"Kili…" he finally breathed out. Thorin sighed in relief, "he will be fine, he is sleeping".  
"But… he is not responding... he does not even move. What if he is not alright?" Fili said, a panicked tone to his voice. Thorin lightly grabbed Fili's shoulder, trying to calm him down again. "I will check on him" he said, "would that put your mind at ease?" Fili nodded slowly.

Thorin rose to his feet and walked over to Kili. When he was next to him, he could hear Kili's slow, deep breathing. His shivering seemed to have stopped and his sweating was definitely less. Carefully, Thorin placed a large hand on his youngest nephew's forehead. The skin under his hand felt cooler then the night before. Thorin smiled a little in relief. Kili was absolutely fine. The Elvish medicine was working well on him, he appeared to be recovering from the infection. For now Kili was just very deep asleep, not aware of anything happening around him.

When Thorin moved back over to Fili, he found his nephew staring expectantly up at him.  
"Kili is fine" Thorin said to him, "he is actually better than he was. He will recover from his wounds. Now, get some more sleep, you need to rest".  
Fili sighed deeply. Thorin's words had put his mind at ease. Although he did really want to be by his brother's side himself, he knew that it would be impossible. His bruises hurt way too much to get up and move around.  
In the end, Fili surrendered to his faith and closed his eyes. It took only minutes before his soft snores told Thorin that he had fallen asleep again.

For Thorin himself, things did not go so easy. He was wide awake, sitting on his coat and staring out into the dark garden. The only sounds coming from his sleeping nephews and the fire in the hearth. He did not know for how long he just sat there, unable to sleep anymore.

When the sky was getting a little lighter and morning was nearing, he had had enough. He stood up with an agitated sigh, checked one more time to make sure Fili and Kili were still fine and walked out of the conservatory.  
He did not know what he was going to do or where he was going, but felt he needed to stretch his legs and get some fresh air. He decided to have a look around the small village. His feet carried him out of the pavilion without difficulty. Outside the sky was getting lighter with every minute, the sun was close to showing itself for the first time on this new day.

Thorin stepped out onto the square they had first arrived on. In one of the large meadows he could see the ponies of his Company, happily grazing in the bright green grass, a thin morning mist still hanging over the meadows. There was no one to be seen, everyone was probably still asleep.

To Thorin's right were the stables. He took a deep breath of the cold morning air and decided to have a look around there.  
The square merged into a narrow cobblestone street with wooden houses on one side, all overlooking the meadows. Every house was decorated with beautiful wood carvings. Thorin noticed that each house had its front door open. This village breathed complete peace and trust, so no one seemed to bother to lock or even close their doors.

The cobblestone street ended at the building which was home to the Elves' horses.  
When Thorin walked into the stables, he stepped onto a long hallway with horses' stables on either side of it. About twenty horses seemed to live here. The stables, too, looked very well cared for with beautiful decorations in the wood, neatly written nameplates on every stable door and golden hooks next to every stable for the horses' halters.

Most of the animals were still asleep, like the rest of the village. However, one horse, a large black one, stood in the middle of the hallway, a few metres away from the entrance to the building. He was calmly eating hay, of which some was laid out on the ground in front of him. No one seemed to be with it. Had it escaped? Was it wild?  
Thorin had stopped walking and stood looking at the horse, not knowing what to do with it.

The horse was a beautiful black one, its dark coat shining even in the dim light. It raised its head when Thorin entered and was looking enquiringly at the Dwarf, continually chewing on the hay. When Thorin did not close in on him or move entirely the horse just continued eating. It was not disturbed by the presence of the Dwarf at all, so Thorin decided to let it be.

All of a sudden there was the sound of something whizzing through the air. At the last moment Thorin saw something coming at him, but there was no more time to duck away. He felt the object fly only inches over his head and with a bang it crashed into the wood behind him.  
Shocked, Thorin spun round to see what it had been. He spotted a wooden beam with dozens of arrows stuck in it, so he concluded it must have been an arrow that had soared only inches over his head.

Already Thorin began to suspect who had released it. Slowly he turned back. This time he looked past the black horse, who was still eating undisturbed, and further down the hallway. At the end, sitting on the ground with her back to a wall, was Rhavaniel. Thorin chuckled to himself: he could have known. Her keen Elf-eyes had probably known he was coming long before he had set a foot into the building.

Seeing Thorin had spotted her, Rhavaniel stood up and walked in his direction, holding a bow in one hand. She stopped next to the horse's flank and swung her arm over its back, leaning into the animal.  
"Target practise?" Thorin said sarcastically motioning with his hand towards the arrows stuck in the wooden beam.  
"No, we just like to scare Dwarves around here" she answered, giving him a taunting look. Thorin couldn't help but laugh at her remark. "We test our bows on that beam before we go out on a trip. It's some sort of tradition for us" Rhavaniel explained, "not all those arrows are mine, in case you are wondering".  
"You did this one?" Thorin asked her. He had spotted an arrow which was split in half by another arrow. "No" Rhavaniel answered, "that would be Legolas' work. He is the best bowman here. Actually, he is the best bowman I have ever known".

Thorin took one more look at the beam covered with arrows. "Good shot from you too, though" he said, "unless you were actually trying to hit me, of course, than it is a terrible shot". Now it was Rhavaniel's turn to laugh, as she shook her head.  
"I thought so" Thorin mumbled, "if you had aimed for me, I am sure I would now have a nice arrow wound to match the claw wounds". Rhavaniel did not answer, but from the look on her face Thorin could tell he was right.

"Are your wounds feeling better?" Rhavaniel asked. "Certainly" Thorin answered, "they're stiff and they still hurt a bit, but I'll be fine. I've overcome worse".  
"And Fili and Kili?" Rhavaniel continued. "Yes, given the circumstances they seem to be fine. Kili's fever has dropped somewhat" Thorin answered her. "Good" Rhavaniel said brightly, "I will check up on their condition later. See if their wounds need any more treatment". Thorin nodded his approval, but did not know what to say next.

"You hungry?" Rhavaniel asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence after a while. Now Thorin thought of it, he was actually famished, realizing it was quite some time since he had last eaten something. "Quite" he answered modestly, for that was an understatement.

Rhavaniel pushed herself off the horse's flank. "Come on boy, you heard the man" she said to it. The horse took one more bite of its hay, then turned around and walked into one of the stables, clearly his.  
"He yours?" Thorin asked. "Yes" Rhavaniel answered, "his name is Sacrifice. I have had him already for a long time. With him I left Mirkwood".  
"You seem to have a special bond" Thorin noted. "We do" Rhavaniel simply anwered without any further explanation. She gave Sacrifice the leftovers of his hay and closed his stable door.

Together Thorin and Rhavaniel walked back to the pavilion and made way for the porch where everyone had eaten the day before.  
Thorin saw to his surprise that almost all the Elves appeared to already be awake at this early hour and were having their breakfast too. He seated himself next to Legolas, who was talking to Bilbo. The Hobbit had apparently also woken up early. None of the members of Thorin's Company were there yet.  
It did not take long before Thorin had joined the conversation with Bilbo and Legolas, while working away his breakfast.

After a while Thorin felt a warm hand on his uninjured shoulder. As he looked up he met Rhavaniel's hazel eyes.  
"I will go check up on Fili and Kili" she said, "see if they need any more treatment". Thorin nodded and made to get up, but felt more pressure from her hand on his shoulder as she pushed him back to the ground again. "It's okay" she said, "enjoy your breakfast. I think I will be able to handle them on my own. I take it they do not bite". Thorin laughed and looked at her indecisively, but then slowly nodded his approval.  
He stayed where he was and watched Rhavaniel walk away for as long as she was in his view… 

* * *

**Thanks again for reading! :-)  
All reviews are still appreciated.**


	12. Chapter 12

**This is the penultimate chapter of this story.  
****Happy reading and all reviews are always appreciated! :-)**

* * *

Fili stirred and raised his head as Rhavaniel opened the door to the conservatory.  
"Good morning" she said as he looked in her direction. "Morning" Fili answered drowsily.

Rhavaniel seated herself on the ground next to Fili's couch.  
"Are you feeling a bit better?" she asked. "It still hurts with every move I make, but I feel a little better" Fili answered.  
"Can I have a look at your wounds?" Rhavaniel said. Moving as less as possible Fili pulled the blankets off himself, revealing his bare, bruised chest and arms. Rhavaniel immediately inched closer to have a better look.  
Her fingertips softly traced his bruises and cuts. Fili held his breath the entire time, afraid that she would hurt him. But Rhavaniel was being too careful for that to happen even once.

"I will treat your wounds one more time, but they already look much better. The pain will stay for a while, though, I am afraid" Rhavaniel said. Fili nodded, a little relief showed on his face.  
"What about Kili?" he asked after a moment of silence. Fili's blue and Rhavaniel's brown eyes locked. "I will go see" she said.

Rhavaniel stood up and walked over to Kili. He still appeared to be sleeping, still on his side with his back turned to his brother, his injured side facing up. Very carefully Rhavaniel pulled his blankets up and began peeling away the bandages.  
Kili stirred as she touched him, letting out a sleepy groan.  
"It's okay, Kili" Rhavaniel said softly, placing a hand on his arm. Kili slowly opened his eyes and slightly turned his head to look over his shoulder to the Elf. It clearly took his drowsy mind a moment to realize what had happened and where he was.  
"Fili?" he asked in a whisper. "He is fine. See, he is right there" Rhavaniel said, pointing over her shoulder towards the blonde Dwarf. She could see Fili looking in her direction expectantly, dying to see his brother's face and confirming that he was alright.

Kili slowly rolled himself onto his back, so he could have a look at his brother. When Kili found his brother's blue eyes looking back at him, a relieved smile passed over his face. "Hey" he murmured, still sleepily. "Good to see you, little brother" Fili said back.

After giving Kili his moment, Rhavaniel resumed checking up on his wound. Removing the last of the bandages, she immediately saw the wound looked much better. It did not look as angry anymore and no more puss had leaked from it. The Elvish medicine had done its work attacking the infection. "Does it still hurt?" she asked. "Not as bad as it did, but it still is painful" Kili answered.

Rhavaniel decided that Kili's wound too needed one more cleaning and it was not long before she had fetched some of the Elvish medicine and some towels and had given Kili's wound another treatment. The proces was much less painful for him, than it had been the previous day. Kili, having woken up properly by that time, was looking at his own wound with interest now, curious to know what it looked like and what Rhavaniel was doing.  
When she had finished and applied a fresh bandage, Kili immediately pushed himself into a sitting position. It did not go entirely easy, for a lot of his energy was still spent, but he managed and sat looking around the conservatory. He was looking with longing to three Elves who were practicing with their bows out in the garden. Rhavaniel laughed at seeing this, "give it time and you will be able to join them again".

Rhavaniel was just moving over to Fili when the door to the conservatory opened and Thorin walked in. Seeing Kili awake and sitting up, he hurried over to his youngest nephew's side and began speaking with him softly.

"Why are you helping us?" Fili asked in a very innocent tone, as Rhavaniel sat down on the ground near him. The Elf was clearly surprised by his question and took her time answering it.  
"Because that is what we Elves do. We use our knowledge and skill to help others as much as we can" she finally answered. "Even if that means helping Dwarves" she added with a smile, seeing Fili was about to retort on that matter.  
Fili chuckled. "You're too good for this world" he said. Rhavaniel let out a snort, "undoubtedly". She heard Thorin snigger behind her as well. "Now, let's see about those wounds of yours".  
Very carefully she helped Fili sit up. He let out a series of winces and was a quite out of breath once he was upright.  
"You okay?" Rhavaniel asked him, to which Fili nodded.

Rhavaniel worked swiftly, treating Fili's wounds with the Elvish medicine again. Fili did not once utter any sounds of pain. He was asking Rhavaniel all kinds of questions about herself and the Hidden Village, which she answered happily. Before he knew it his chest, arms and back were treated and bandaged again.

* * *

Over the next few days Fili and Kili kept improving. They were gradually regaining their strength, joining the others on the porch regularly and able to walk small distances around the village. They were still not nearly as strong and fit as they used to be and a lot of things still hurt them, but they were recovering well.

Thorin was very glad to see that his nephews were healing from their injuries. Still, with every day they stayed longer in the Hidden Village an undefined feeling of sadness and unease crept up on him for reasons even unknown to himself. He was joining less and less in the conversations of his Company and the Elves and seemed to unconsciously look for places where he could be alone. He had slept very little already for a couple of nights, not able to find the peace of mind to just fall asleep.

It was on the early morning of the seventh day of their stay with the Elves that Thorin was wandering the sandy road between the meadows. Once again he had nearly not slept, just tossing and turning under his blankets, until he had decided it was no good anyway and had gotten up.

He was alone, the rest of his Company and even the Elves were still asleep. He walked slowly, staring down at his boots, kicking little pebbles which were lying on the sand.  
He spun round when he suddenly heard the soft sound of feet behind him. Rhavaniel was jogging towards him. Thorin was surprised how close she had already come before he had heard her, for which he cursed himself a little.  
"Do you ever sleep?" Thorin said grumpily, as Rhavaniel stopped next to him. She was fully dressed, her hair neat and not looking at all like she had just woken up. "Certainly" she answered, "but you just make a lot of noise when you get up and go out".  
"I… am sorry" Thorin stammered out, for he had tried to be as quiet as possible, not wanting to wake up anyone else. Rhavaniel smiled at him, "you make a lot of noise to us Elves, but I am sure you were very quiet in terms of Dwarves".

They walked further down the road in silence. In the meadow on their right the Company's ponies were huddled together in order to keep warm after the cold night.  
"I think there is something you need to get off your chest, is there not?" Rhavaniel asked Thorin out of the blue after a while, "you seem a bit off these last days". Thorin did not know what to answer. He knew this woman for a week and already she seemed to be able to read him perfectly.  
Thorin sighed deeply. Seeing this, the expression on Rhavaniel's face changed to one of compassion and a little bit of worry. "If anything is bothering you, you can tell me" she said. Thorin stopped walking and his light eyes shifted to her face, clearly deciding whether he could trust her.  
"Oh, you would not care" he finally said with a sigh and marched on again.

Rhavaniel was sure something was amiss with Thorin, but she could also see he had trouble in lowering his well-trained defences. Showing his deepest emotions and feelings was not something he was used to doing, let alone to an Elf.  
She watched him walk away for a few strides, then followed. She easily caught up with him, took a hold of his wrist and stopped him dead in his tracks. Thorin looked round at her in surprise: her grip was not firm, far from it even, but there was an urgency emanating from it that made him stop walking immediately.  
"You had the kindness to listen to my story" Rhavaniel said softly, "now it is time for me to listen to you. To help you…".  
Thorin avoided to look at her. He felt his own defences break down more and more with every breath he took. Slowly he came to the conclusion that she was the one person he could open up to. She would understand his feelings, she would not find him weak or strange, she would be kind to him. But most importantly, she would not judge him for it.

"Alright…" Thorin finally said, "but not here". He looked back over his shoulder to the village with a bit of an anxious expression on his face. It seemed he did not like the idea of being overheard or running the risk to be interrupted by someone. "Come on" Rhavaniel said, "I know somewhere we can talk privately".

They walked further down the sandy road until they had reached the point where the meadows ended and the trees of the forest began. Suddenly Rhavaniel made a right turn onto a very small path leading into the forest, which Thorin had not even noticed .

The sound of water running somewhere grew louder with every step they took deeper into the forest. Finally, the trees opened up to a narrow river with a small waterfall. The water sparkled in the first rays of sunlight.  
Rhavaniel seated herself on one of the big boulders lying on the riverbed and Thorin followed her example. Rhavaniel looked at him kindly. "Now, tell me what is bothering you?"...


	13. Chapter 13

It was a moment before Thorin answered. He took a deep breath before he finally spoke.  
"This whole situation with Fili and Kili is just a bit harder on me than I expected" he said, voice a little thick. "They are your nephews" Rhavaniel said, "it is not strange to find it difficult to see them injured. You should not be ashamed of that".  
Thorin shook his head. "You don't understand" he said, "I saw what happened to Kili and I heard Fili getting tortured. I was left to pick up their broken bodies off the floor, only because I could not protect them. I failed them when they had to rely on me most".

Rhavaniel had only heard Bilbo's version of the Dwarves' journey so far and this information was new to her.  
"Oh my…" she said shocked, "you really heard Fili getting tortured?"  
Thorin nodded. "All of it… We were waiting for the darkness to set in to attack the Orc-hill and that's when we heard it. The sound of those screams…so terrible… the pain he must have been in… I will never forget it". He shook his head rapidly from side to side, like he was trying to shake the images out of his brain.

Rhavaniel was silent. She looked at Thorin, who was staring down at his knees. "That is the most horrible thing I have ever heard" she said softly, "you must have felt so helpless". Thorin buried his face in his hands, trying to block out the memories coming back to him. "Yes" came his muffled reply.

The two of them were silent for some time. After a while Thorin raised his head from his hands and looked at Rhavaniel. She could see his eyes were a little red, though she could not actually see any tears.  
"I started to realize how easily I could have lost them on that day" Thorin nearly whispered, "and that frightens me. They are young and still have a whole life ahead of them. They should not die on this quest, not because of me".  
"They can very well take care of themselves" Rhavaniel immediately threw in, "they are very good fighters and brave Dwarves, you know that". Thorin took another deep breath and nodded. Indeed his nephews were good fighters and had bravery to spare, but somehow it kept nagging him.  
"It just makes me rethink whether it was right to set out on this quest" Thorin said. "To reclaim what is rightfully yours?" Rhavaniel answered, "that sounds like a very justified quest to me. No quest is without danger, but you are surrounded by loyal Dwarves, who know how to wield a weapon and are extremely loyal to you. In my opinion, you could not have found better company".

Suddenly Thorin stood up and walked a few meters away. He stopped at the edge of the river, the noses of his boots just touching the water. He stared into the trees on the other side of the river. Rhavaniel knew he was trying to get his composure back and rebuild his walls, and she let him be. She pulled her legs up onto the boulder, wrapped her arms around them and looked out over the river. The sun was now shining warmly on them, the soft wind playing with both their hair. Soon, she too was lost deep in thought.

* * *

Rhavaniel was pulled out of her reverie when she felt Thorin sitting down beside her on the boulder, his strong shoulder lightly brushing past hers.  
"We will be leaving tomorrow" Thorin said. His voice had its normal deep tone back, his composure again strong and warrior-like. Finally confessing his feelings seemed to have done him some good.  
Rhavaniel nodded in reply. She had known the day would come soon. "Thank you, once again" Thorin said, "for all you have done for us. Without your help I am not sure what would have become of Fili and Kili, and myself even".  
Rhavaniel looked up into Thorin's light eyes. They showed sincerity, he meant every word he had just said.  
Without thinking about it, Thorin pulled Rhavaniel into a bear hug, not even sure if this was a custom to the Elves as well. When she answered by wrapping her arms around him, hands resting on his shoulder blades, he knew she did not mind.

After a moment they released each other. "Let's go back to the village" Thorin said softly, "before the others start worrying". Rhavaniel agreed. They had been out in the forest for quite some time without anyone knowing they went there.

On their way back they were happily chatting. Thorin told stories of mischievous deeds of Fili and Kili and Rhavaniel was telling him some stories of events in the Hidden Village. Thorin laughed a booming laugh after hearing a particularly good story in which Legolas and Rhavaniel had been out on a trip with Gandalf and had decided to prank the wizard. Ending with him having a fluffy fur hat which they had managed to paint a nice shade of soft-pink.  
Rhavaniel, on the other hand, doubled over laughing as Thorin told her the story in which Fili and Kili had taken up tree-climbing, until the branch they stood on broke and they both landed in the stream below, soaking the young Dwarves completely.

As they reached the sandy road and the meadows again, they could see Kili, Legolas and Bilbo standing in the middle of the road halfway down. Fili sat on the ground leaning with his back against one of the wooden beams of the fence.  
It appeared Legolas was trying to teach Bilbo how to use a bow, which was not quite successful. Bilbo never managed to shoot the arrow much further than a few feet, causing the four of them to laugh out loud.

Upon seeing Thorin and Rhavaniel nearing them, Bilbo turned towards them with a huge smile on his face. "It appears I am not made for this" he said laughing. "So I see" Thorin answered, also laughing.  
Thorin and Rhavaniel both sat down on the ground on either side of Fili and watched as Kili and Legolas tried once more to teach Bilbo how to use the bow. They had several more good laughs and after some hours of practice Bilbo was still dreadful at shooting. "I'll stick to my letter opener" he said. Legolas sniggered and gave him a pat on the back. "What might be a letter opener to us, is a very good sword to you" he said.

It was near lunchtime when the six of them made their way back to the pavilion. With everyone together there Thorin broke the news to the others that they would be leaving the next morning.  
"We shall have a feast in farewell to you" Legolas immediately said, "we shall have one more night of joy together. I will start the preparations". "I will help you" Bilbo immediately said and followed the Elf.  
Thorin and most of the Company went off to start preparing for their departure. Fili and Kili were left with Rhavaniel. She made to walk away to take care of the horses, but was interrupted by Kili. "What are you going to do?" he asked her.  
"Our horses and your ponies need attending to" she answered. Kili looked to his brother. Fili's and Kili's strength had quickly returned to them under the Elves' care and they did not feel like sitting still anymore. "Need some help?" Fili asked. "Sure, come along" Rhavaniel answered with a smile. 

* * *

That evening they had a large feast on the porch of the pavilion with plenty of food and drink. Each told stories of their own kin. Everyone listened especially interested to Bilbo's tales of the Shire, since for most of them that land was unknown.

Thorin did not say much during the evening, but he did seem to enjoy himself. He listened attentively to all the stories, sitting back in his armchair. He looked around at the others chatting and laughing, smiling to himself as he saw Fili and Kili having a huge laugh with Rhavaniel, Legolas and Ernil. It seemed they were also getting along quite well with the Elves.  
He felt proud of his Company and these Elves were among the friendliest people he had ever met.  
As he listened to the murmur of the voices, he felt himself become extremely drowsy. The nights of little sleep finally seemed to be taking their toll on him and before he realized it he had given in to it and was deep asleep in his armchair.

It was Bofur who first noticed the sleeping Dwarf Prince. "Well, look at that" he said. Rhavaniel and Bilbo, who sat opposite Bofur listening to an extremely funny story of his, turned around to look at what he meant. Seeing Thorin asleep, Rhavaniel stood up. "He'll be cold" she said, picking up a blanket and covering him up with it. The Dwarf Prince gave a grunt in his sleep and stirred a little, but did not wake. 

* * *

Thorin was woken up the next morning by the first rays of sunlight shining on the porch and on his face. It felt nice and warm. For the first time in a whole week he had slept all through the night.  
He sleepily looked around. Some Elves were working on preparing the breakfast. One brought him a large cup of tea when he noticed the Dwarf awake. Thorin recognized him as Ernil, the one-armed Elf from Mirkwood.

Warming his hands on the cup, Thorin looked over to the square. He suddenly felt a little sadness creep up on him as he saw Legolas and Rhavaniel saddling the Company's ponies for them. It made their departure so definitive all of a sudden. Thorin did not doubt his decision to continue their quest. Durin knows they had to!  
After his conversation with Rhavaniel the day before, he knew he did the right thing. He could not let his Company down, the ones that trusted him, believed in him. They would fight for him and he would fight for them, till the bitter end if he had to.

Slowly the rest of the Company had woken up and gathered on the porch for breakfast. Most of them already had their stuff packed and had their packs lying on the ground next to them as they ate. 

* * *

Thorin stood up when he was sure everyone had eaten and was ready for departure. To the rest of his Company this was a signal they should do the same and make their way over to their ponies.

As they walked onto the square, Legolas and Rhavaniel were just finishing strapping the last of the packs on one of the ponies. All sixteen of them plus Gandalf's horse were ready to go, looking fit and eager for the journey.

"Thank you for everything you have done for us" Balin said to Legolas, as he made his way over to his pony. Legolas nodded to him, "it was our pleasure". Most of the others shook Legolas' hand or patted him on the back in farewell.  
Thorin looked around, but the one person he was dying to say farewell to was nowhere to be seen anymore. It seemed Rhavaniel had simply vanished from the square unnoticed.  
He tried to delay as much as logically possible. He checked and rechecked his pack and saddle, but eventually he had to face the fact that he would not have his goodbye with her.

Slowly, and feeling a little let down, he mounted his pony. He rode a little forward to have one last word with Legolas, when saw the now familiar braid of dark, black hair. Thorin sighed in relief. Rhavaniel was right there, standing next to Legolas.  
"You did not actually think I was going to let you leave without saying goodbye?" she said. Thorin felt a little embarrassed, but eventually did admit to the fact that he had thought so.  
Rhavaniel laughed at him for it. She walked up to him and placed a hand on his knee. "It is an honour to have met you, Thorin Oakenshield" she said. "Likewise" was all Thorin could think of saying. "I hope one day we will meet again" he added. "Oh, I am sure of it" Rhavaniel answered mysteriously.

With these last words, Thorin slowly turned his pony around and began making for the sandy road. The rest of the Company followed him in silence, the only sounds coming from the ponies' hoofs.  
As Bilbo rode his pony Myrtle past Rhavaniel, his outstretched hand brushed her hair. "Farewell" he said softly, so only she could hear it. She smiled at him and gently reached up to touch his arm, returning his goodbyes.

* * *

Thorin listened to Fili and Kili chatting and joking on their ponies behind him. Their wounds were still healing, but they appeared to be strong enough to continue the journey. Thorin did decide to keep a close eye on them. He would not allow anything to happen to them again.

Little by little, the ponies' steps were putting more distance between the Company and the Hidden Village and its inhabitants. Thorin looked back over his shoulder. On the square he could still see two figures. Rhavaniel and Legolas were watching them as they rode away.  
Thorin kept looking back at them for several more times, until a bend in the road took them out of his sight. "Farewell" he whispered softly, "until we meet again". He shifted his gaze to the road ahead of him. At Erebor it was where all their fates would be decided… 

* * *

**Thank you all once again for reading!  
This was the last chapter. I hope you enjoyed the story.**  
**I have written a sequel to this story. It is now in the final editing stage, but I will start posting it as soon as possible. **  
**As always, all reviews are appreciated! :-)  
**


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